House of Questions
Delphi House of Questions was an EU Culture 2000 project by three EXARC members. Under this umbrella, other EXARC members as well collected and answered the most frequently asked questions by visitors to archaeological open-air museums. The largest part of this collection of questions you can find here – as many of them still carry importance. In most cases we offer the questions both in the original language and in English. With several questions you will find illustrations by Savannah Parent.
Did toys exist in prehistory? And if they did, from what materials (CZ)?
They surely existed but we are not able to recognize them as such in archaeological material. Miniature vessels, figures of people or animals, rattles and similar artefacts were often made but may have been used for religious and magical activities...
What did children in prehistory do (NL)?
There were no schools yet as nobody could read or write, so no time needed to be wasted on that. Instead, they had to help with jobs in and around the house like cooking, spinning wool and tending the cattle. Surely they had time for play as well. Excavations revealed for example small ceramic pots and animals. Maybe these were toys.
Does a narrow water ditch and a wattle fence have any defensive value anyway (DE)?
Yes. One should realise, the potential enemy was under fire of arrows and stones when trying to conquer the ditch and tall fence.
How important was the individual in the Middle Ages (NL)?
A possible answer is to be found at Nisbet:"as one of the points of calibration of Nisbet's vision on history, the transition between the Middle Ages and the Modern Era stands, in which both should be less seen as easy discernible...
What crops did prehistoric people grow and what herbs did they collect (CZ)?
The composition of grown plants differs both regionally and temporarily and is dependent on the climate, local conditions, fertility of soil and so on...
Was the castle meant as well for defending (NL)?
A medieval castle - like the one from Eindhoven - often was the house in which the Lordship lived. Often it was the only stone building in the area he owned...
What weapons were used in battle by the people inhabiting the lake fortress (LV)?
The people living in the lake fortress used the characteristic close combat and missile weapons of the Viking Age. Missile weapons included the bow, with iron-tipped arrows, as well as the javelin and probably also the sling...
How did people hunt before bow and arrow were invented (NL)?
Bow and arrow were invented about 15,000 years ago, when the last ice age was ending. Before that, people used a stick to make their arm longer, thus enhancing the power with which the spear was thrown...
How heavy is a mammoth tusk? What is its value (CH)?
We have never weighed the tusk in the museum in Zug, but it is this heavy, it has to be carried by two people. The value cannot be expressed in money as it is of scientific nature...
Were there any withches burnt at the Bronze Age stake at the museum in Asparn (AT)?
The stake did not serve as place to burn witches, but the people at the end of the Bronze Age were generally cremated, ashes were collected in an urn.