More than 600 artifacts came from 42 graves at Burr’s Hill Royal Burial Ground in Warren, Rhode Island, excavated in 1913 by Brown University librarian and amateur archaeologist Charles W. Kerr. Finds included copper beads, gold ornaments described as lances and scrolls, a red jacket with solid gold buttons and gold-thread embroidery, and more than two dozen iron and copper tripod vessels. Only three tripods are known to survive. The video argues that they were Chinese-made vessels and uses them to support early Chinese contact, but that is not an established archaeological finding. Railroad construction in 1853 led to looting. The Narragansett petitioned for the remains and associated objects under NAGPRA, and they were reinterred in a concrete vault at Burr’s Hill in 2017.
Burr’s Hill artifacts reinterred in 2017; “Chinese” tripods remain disputed
Site mentioned
📍 Burrs Hill Royal Burial Ground
Key facts
- Burr’s Hill Royal Burial Ground is in Warren, Rhode Island. Charles W. Kerr excavated 42 graves there in 1913, recovering more than 600 artifacts.
- Kerr was a Brown University librarian and amateur archaeologist. He gave finds to Brown and New York’s Hay Museum of the American Indian.
- The artifacts included copper beads, gold ornaments described as lances and scrolls, and a red jacket with solid gold buttons and gold-thread embroidery.
- Railroad construction in 1853 and the removal of sand and gravel from the site led to grave looting.
- More than two dozen tripod vessels were recovered, but only three are known to survive. The video argues that they were Chinese-made vessels, but that attribution is not established by the archaeological evidence.
- The Narragansett petitioned for the return of the remains and associated objects under NAGPRA. They were reinterred in a concrete vault at Burr’s Hill in 2017.
Sources
MARC view: Burr's Hill, a 17th century Wampanoag burial ...catalog.hathitrust.org
‡aBurr's Hill, a 17th century Wampanoag burial ground in Warren, Rhode Island / ‡cedited by Susan G. Gibson. 260, ⊔, ⊔, ‡a[Providence, R.I.] ...
9Hugh Cole Well, Warren 10 Burr's Hill Burial ... - Dr. Weeddrweed.net
artifacts and reburied them at the site in Burr's Hill. Park in May, 2017. 4 Little Neck Cemetery, East Providence. Little Neck Cemetery lies at the north end ...
Burr's Hill, a 17th Century Wampanoag Burial Ground in ...books.google.com
A 17th century Wampanoag burial ground in Warren, Rhode Island. Front Cover. Susan G. Gibson Haffenreffer. Museum of Anthropology, Brown University, 1980.
Burr's Hillhmdb.org
Burr's Hill. Royal Pokanoket Burial Site. , The Sowams Heritage Area includes Barrington, Bristol, East Providence, Providence, and Warren RI, and Rehoboth, ...
Glocester's mysterious Indian grave - Stone Wingsstonewings.wordpress.com
The biggest mystery about this simple stone structure is why it was called an Indian burial in a Rhode Island hiking book. I have asked half ...
8 Burr's Hill Royal Burial Ground 9 Bristol's 17th Century housesdrweed.net
Burr's Hill on the Bike Path across from the Town Beach in Warren, RI, was an aborigi- nal burial ground that once contained dozens of grave sites of the people
Burr's Hill Royal Pokanoket Burial Site in Warren, RIlocal.yahoo.com
Royal Pokanoket Burial Site, a(n) Landmarks business in Warren, RI. 24 Hours SatOpen. Water StreetWarren, RI 02885· 2579.73
North Burial Ground - City of Providenceprovidenceri.gov
Providence's historic North Burial Ground (NBG) is a 113-acre cemetery and cultural resource managed by the Parks Department.
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