100 years of research, speculation and intrigue

Florida Public Archaeology Network Outreach Coordinator Amber Grafft-Weiss reported to Historic City News that tomorrow, Regional Director Richard W. Estabrook will make a presentation on The Famous Crystal River Site.

The program is free and is open to the public on Tuesday, November 3rd, 2009, between 7:00 p.m. and 8:30 p.m. and will be held in the Flagler Room at Flagler College.

Florida Public Archaeology Network, Central Regional Center in cooperation with Saint Augustine Archaeological Association and Flagler College, will present “The Famous Crystal River Site: 100 Years of Research, Speculation, and Intrigue in Coastal Citrus County”

Since C.B. Moore started his investigations at the site in 1903, the Crystal River site has been the subject of cutting-edge research, rampant speculation, and intrigue for the people who have worked at this site.

Starting with a brief site overview, Estabrook will discuss the various site components, including the two temple mounds, the unique burial mound complex, and the famous (perhaps infamous) stelae.

Several well-known Florida archaeologists – Ripley Bullen, Gordon Willey, Hale Smith, and Brent Weisman – have all contributed to the story of Crystal River. Yet, despite all this work, a definitive site monograph or even agreement of the site’s temporal assignment is still lacking.

This presentation promises to highlight some of the site’s most interesting mysteries and charts a path for future research.

The Saint Augustine Archaeological Association is a not-for-profit organization whose members range from professional, to vocational, to “armchair” archaeologists – anyone who shares an interest in and a respect for the people who have preceded us. The Association is the regional chapter of the Florida Anthropological Society.