The archaeological evidence of chains makes that reality tangible.

It is one thing to read that Spanish expeditions enslaved Indigenous people.

It is another to see an actual object associated with that system lying inside the remains of a Native settlement.

THE SEARCH FOR GOLD

De Soto’s obsession with wealth shaped the expedition’s decisions.

The Spanish had arrived in North America expecting something comparable to the riches encountered farther south.

But the Southeast did not provide the kind of gold and silver they wanted.