A Smithsonian trinomial (formally the Smithsonian Institution Trinomial System , abbreviated SITS ) is a unique identifier assigned to archaeological sites in many states in the United States . Trinomials are composed of a one or two digit coding for the state, typically two letters coding for the county or county-equivalent within the state, and one or more sequential digits representing the order in which the site was listed in that county. The Smithsonian Institution developed the site number system in the 1930s and 1940s, but it no longer maintains the system. Trinomials are now assigned by the individual states. The 48 states then in the union were assigned numbers in alphabetical order. Alaska was assigned number 49 and Hawaii was assigned number 50, after those states were admitted to the union. There is no Smithsonian trinomial number assigned for the District of Columbia or any United States territory.
7-660: Mangum Mound Site ( 22 CB 584 ) is an archaeological site of the Plaquemine culture in Claiborne County, Mississippi . It is located at milepost 45.7 on the Natchez Trace Parkway . Two very rare Mississippian culture repoussé copper plates have been discovered during excavations of the site. The site was used as a burial mound during the Foster Phase of the culture (1350 to 1500 CE) and
14-401: Is believed to have been abandoned before the 1540 expedition of Hernando de Soto . The burial mound was first investigated in 1936 by its owner Spurgeon C. Mangum, a farmer. Mangum found human remains, various pottery fragments belonging to the Plaquemine culture , chunkey stones, and three fragments of a repoussé copper plate with an avian design similar to other plates found throughout
21-871: The American Midwest and Southeast. These portray the Birdman motif important to the Southeastern Ceremonial Complex (SECC). The site underwent a series of test excavations in April 1951 as part of the Natchez Trace Park Survey. During these excavations, twelve extended burials and possibly one bundled burial were found. The site was excavated in 1963 for the National Park Service by archaeologist Charles F. Bohannon . Bohannon and his team found
28-557: The Smithsonian number. Alaska uses three-letter abbreviations for USGS map quadrangles in place of the county code. Arizona uses a five-part identifier based on USGS maps, specifying quadrangles, then rectangles within a quadrangle, a sequential number within the rectangle, and a code identifying the agency issuing the sequential number. California uses a three-letter abbreviation for counties. Connecticut and Rhode Island do not use any sub-state codes, with site identifiers consisting of
35-521: The burials of numerous individuals. One individual, believed to have been a woman in her late 30s, possessed markings on her bones which suggested to investigators that she suffered from multiple myeloma . Bohannon excavated the remains of eighty-four individuals, of which more than half were bundled burials. Some of the bundles seemed little more than disarticulated piles of bones, and Bohannon came to believe they were earlier burials that had been moved to make way for new extended burials. Another copper plate
42-569: The state abbreviation and a sequential number series for the whole state. Delaware uses a single letter code for counties and adds a block code (A-K) within each county, with sequential numbers for each block. Hawaii uses a four-part identifier, "50" for the state, a two-digit code for the island, then a two-digit code to designate the USGS topographical quad, plus a four digit sequential site number for sites on each island. NN: One or two digit number, 1 though 16, identifying rectangles (15 ' USGS maps) in
49-404: Was also found during these excavations. Smithsonian trinomial Most states use trinomials of the form "nnAAnnnn", but some specify a space or dash between parts of the identifier, i.e., "nn AA nnnn" or "nn-AA-nnnn". Some states use variations of the trinomial system. Arizona, California, Connecticut, Maine, Rhode Island, and Vermont use two-letter abbreviations of the state name instead of
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