These excavations produced the evidence for Woodhenge, established the stratigraphic sequence of Monks Mound’s construction, and began the systematic analysis of the city’s residential areas.

Modern archaeology at Cahokia uses techniques that the earlier investigators could not have imagined.

Ground-penetrating radar allows archaeologists to see subsurface features without excavation — identifying buried structures, pits, and other features that would otherwise be invisible.

LiDAR — Light Detection and Ranging — uses laser pulses to create extremely precise three-dimensional maps of the ground surface, revealing subtle topographic features that are invisible to the naked eye.

Isotopic analysis of human and animal remains allows researchers to reconstruct past diets and to track the movements of individuals from their childhood homes to the places where they died.