Emily Chan
With the help of sonar technology, many long-lost shipwrecks and sunken treasures have been detected in the depths of Lake Michigan.
One of the most interesting artifacts uncovered from the bottom of the lake has to be a submerged stone structure.
Under the glistening waters of Grand Traverse Bay lies an ancient miniature Stonehenge. The prehistoric monument had been made out of stones that were at least 9,000-years-old, making it one of the oldest structures ever found in North America.
So, how did the stone structure come to the attention of archaeologists? Mark Holley, a professor of underwater archaeology at Northwestern Michigan University, was searching the region for shipwrecks when he came across a rock with a mastodon carved into it. The area was known for being a busy maritime trading route during the 19th and 20th centuries.
The boulder with the image of the mastodon stood about four feet high and was five feet long. Mastodons were animals that looked similar to elephants and went extinct around 10,000 years ago.
The age of the mastodon carving coincides with the simultaneous post-Ice Age presence of humans and mastodons in the upper Midwest region.
As Holley explored further, he discovered an arrangement of ancient stones that resembled Stonehenge.
There were two rings of stones. The outer ring was approximately 40 feet in diameter, while the inner was roughly 20 feet. They are located 40 feet below the water’s surface.
At the time the structure was erected, the lake bed had been dry. It also came 4,000 years before Stonehenge was created.
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