Lava Beds Indian Mortar - Lava Beds National Monument Visitor Center
N 41° 42.850 W 121° 30.573
10T E 623987 N 4619114
This Indian mortar lies next to the Lava Beds National Monument Visitor Center in Siskiyou County, CA (park fees may apply in season).
Waymark Code: WMFFPB
Location: California, United States
Date Posted: 10/12/2012
Views: 3
After visiting the inside of the Lava Beds National Monument Visitor Center, I took a walk around the side of the building and found this large Indian mortar, along with a couple of smaller half mortars that were lying next to it. There is a small plaque next to the mortar that says the following:
INDIAN MORTARS
The large holes in the rocks were formed as
Indians ground seeds for food: In large rocks,
when the hole became too deep for easy
removal of the food, a new hole was started.
Mortars in smaller rocks could be dumped out.
I was very surprised to see that the mortars were free-standing since they are susceptible to being stolen. The visitor center was built in 2003 and it is a very informative and educational venue for any visitor wanting to learn more about the history of this area before white settlers emigrated here over 150 years ago.
Visit Instructions: To log your visit to this Waymark, post a picture of your GPSr next to the artifact. Post a second, wider picture to show the "Ancient Evidence" in context.