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.
How do you see the difference between an old and a new object (CH)?
There are numerous copied artefacts. It is quite well possible to copy prehistoric objects. For a layman it is especially in the case of flint objects difficult to see the difference between a copy and an original. Archaeologists however can generally speaking discern such "fakes"...
What kind of clothing did people wear in prehistory (NL)?
There has been only a limited number of finds of clothing in the Netherlands. Therefore, the reconstructions we show at Archeon are based on many assumptions and foreign finds, mainly from Germany and Denmark...
How could people live in these smoked through rooms (DE)?
Medieval people were used to the smoke, like the modern city people the exhaust smoke of cars. Furthermore we should suppose, in the Middle Ages people could make a fire with much less smoke then...
How many parish churches existed in Denmark in the Middle Ages (DK)?
In total there were 2,000 stone churches, all built between 1150 and 1250 AD. In libraries in Denmark you will find books about them...
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...
In the Iron Age, who was exactly the boss (NL)?
That depended on where exactly: at home, in the village.. Life was probably very much structured because the security of existence of every individual and the group as a whole depended on it...
Were people in prehistory buried in some sort of covering, something like coffin or a bag (CZ)?
That depends on time and region. In Bronze Age Czechia there is evidence of wooden coffins either from planks or dug out from tree trunks. Timbered burial chambers...
Were there many parties in the Middle Ages? (NL)?
The image we have of the Middle Ages is often about the king at his castle, knights and ladies, jokers et cetera. But the truth was much different...
What did prehistoric women do when they had their period (NL)?
Perhaps prehistoric women did not have their period as often as nowadays. In times of lack of food, during pregnancy and the lengthy period of breast feeding, they didn't get bleeding...
How many people lived in the neolithic longhouse in Asparn (AT)?
One averagely has to count with a large family of up to 20 persons.