WISCONSIN DELLS, Wis. -- Some very special and historic land was returned to its rightful owners on Monday.

In a special ceremony, the Wisconsin Department of Transportation returned land to the Ho Chunk Nation.

The land is located at the Kingsley Bend Wayside on Highway 16, just south of Wisconsin Dells, and is one of the best examples of tribal effigy mounds, WISC-TV reported.

"The tribes have developed themselves in such that now instead of being oppressed, they can stand up and say, 'We want these sites protected and if you can't take care of it, we'll take care of them,'" said Ho Chunk Nation archeologist Jay Toth.

The DOT lacked the funds to take care of the site.

Now, that task will fall back into the hands of the Ho Chunk Nation. Some of the mounds date to the year 600 A.D., WISC-TV reported.