Terrapond (Culture)

The Terrapond (also Terropond) culture is a prehistoric material culture found throughout the forests and coastal regions of Juhnvechteya. Named for the type site where their artifacts were first discovered, evidence of their occupation and migrations is found throughout the eastern forests, rivers and plains of Juhnvechteya.
== Type Site and Discovery ==
The Terrapond is a small body of water to the south of Joraje. 
The pond was used as a dumping site by local quarries, which would dispose of unwanted materials and broken tools (such as pickaxes) in the pond. This dumping has been occurring for centuries. 
The first artifacts in the pond were discovered by a local fisherman, who dredged up shards of pottery and arrowheads while fishing in the pond. The fisherman, unaware of the significance of the shards, and believing them to be from the quarries, threw most back into the water, and decided to sell some arrowheads at the local market. These were happened upon by archeologist Haroe Jakishof, who inquired about their origins, and began excavating the pond the following year. 
The finds from the pond were spread throughout many different eras, with such artifacts including old pickaxes from the quarries, pottery shards, stone arrows and spears, a human skeleton stuffed inside a barrel, coinage from the First Dynasty period of Joraje, and masonry tools. Considering the history of the pond, it was first assumed that all these finds were from a quarry from the First Dynasty, yet these fears were dissuaded when the archeologists discovered a skull of carved stone in the lakebed, unlike any other artifact from any known culture. Jakishof thus named the culture the Terrapond Material Culture, for the site where it was discovered.
It is unknown if these artifacts were originally buried in the pond, or were dumped there by the quarries, being removed from caves in the hills and mountains. Whatever the case, this first discovery was quickly followed by many more discoveries throughout the region.
== Distribution ==
Artifacts from the Terrapond culture have been found across eastern Juhnvechteya, from the swamps of the Order State to the forests of the Westmarch in Joraje. Their artifacts are commonly found in caches in rivers and wetlands, as well as in smaller pits throughout the forests and meadows of the region.
Category:Lore