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Groups of people from diverse cultures and backgrounds have gathered at the Man Mound for more than 1,000 years.

The ancient burial site on Man Mound Road northeast of Baraboo is the only remaining effigy mound in the world depicting a human figure, and is believed to have been constructed by ancestors of the Ho-Chunk people. Others have been destroyed by land development, flooding and other natural causes.

Wisconsin Historical Society archeologist Amy Rosebrough said the mound’s uniquely human characteristics are key to understanding why the site has fascinated archeologists, anthropologists and other researchers for more than 100 years.

“I think it’s because he’s human shaped,” she said. “Most of the other effigy mounds are animals, but with Man Mound we see ourselves – we can relate.”

Rosebrough conducted her doctoral dissertation on Wisconsin’s effigy mounds, and her research on the Man Mound led to the site being designated a National Historic Landmark by the National Parks Service last fall. For more than a year, Rosebrough studied several mysteries surrounding the mound, including who built it, how it came to be and what it represents.