Experimental Archaeology

Early excavations at Fengate (now an industrial estate bordering Flag Fen) revealed the foundations of Bronze Age round-houses; one of which was vey well preserved. Features included eaves-drip gullies (ground level gutter), a circular exterior wall 8m in diameter, an internal ring of postholes, a porch doorway facing eastwards and a hearth. This has given archaeologists a valuable insight into how houses were constructed.

Archaeologists have long been puzzled by internal rings of postholes in Bronze Age round-houses, which are thought to be roof supports. Usually a well constructed roof of straw or reed thatch would not require internal supports, but in the softer soils of the fens, and with the strong Siberian winter winds, perhaps the Fen Folk needed added insulation and support. So, in 1989 we decided to put this idea to the test and construct our own round-houses.

Building a Bronze Age Round-house

Initially, replica Bronze Age axes were used (although after felling several poles using authentic techniques the team resorted to a chainsaw to speed up the process). John Spencer suggested that the internal roof supports were required because of the weight of the roof – perhaps roofs were made out of turf?

Turf roofs are known from Scotland and in Scandinavia, so we had a go, laying one layer of turf green side down and a second layer green side up so that the two would knit together. This would give good insulation too. With watering, the roof survived the hot summer – but it leaked!

Discussing the problem with Dr. Edgren from Sweden, he explained that round-houses there have a layer of reed to line the roof and channel water to the ground. Both of our round-houses now have a reed layer and are far more effective at keeping out the wet!

Spurred on, we reconstructed the drove way which ran down the fen edge and the field systems bordering it to recreate the Bronze Age fen edge landscape with the farmstead. You can see this Bronze Age settlement at Flag Fen today.

Making Bowls

In 2007, at our Experimental Archaeology Festival, archaeologist Mike Bamforth tested a theory that some wooden bowls were created by burning out their inner depression. It proved to be very tricky and dirty work