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 did people make bread in those days (NL)?
Both in the Middle Ages as in prehistory the same story: using a bread oven. For a bread, you need to grind corn (a very time consuming effort), make dough of it and let it rise with yeast...
What was the average life expectancy of the medieval man in Denmark (DK)?
According to the statistics of skeletal finds, approximately 40 years. However, this includes a large infant mortality, and thus some people might well have lived considerably longer...
How many people stayed on a Crannog (UK)?
Crannogs varied in size but it would probably be an extended family of parents, grand parents and children, aunts uncles, cousins, etc. Crannogs were used from 5,000 years ago to as recently as 250 years ago, so the number of people staying there would have changed as the function of crannogs changed.
Why are different parts of the Iron Age called in different ways (SE)?
Also in Sweden, the Iron Age is divided into the Early Iron Age (500 B.C - 400 A.D.) and the Late Iron Age (400 - 1050 A.D.). These period are in turn subdivided...
Did people have contraception (NL)?
Contraception aids are hardly known from Prehistory. The Greek and Romans used different ways of not getting pregnant: medicines, special positions, periodical abstinence, as well as amulets. If this failed, even then they already used abortion...
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...
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.
Iron in the Iron Age, did that exist (NL)?
It is not for nothing called "Iron Age". The art of making iron originates - like many developments - from the Near East. In the Southern Netherlands, for tools and weapons, often wood and stone were used, occasionally bronze...
How heavy is a Roman suit of armour (NL)?
The Loreca hamata (chain armour) weighs about 10 to 11 kilos. A Loreca segmentata (plate armour) is about 7 kilos.
Why are there so many archaeological monuments preserved in the area in Northwest Schleswig (DE)?
In this region, there is a long history – since the 16th century - of protected forests. Wood was very important because of the vicinity to the open sea and the „woodless“ marshlands. This had the consequence that there was no agricultural use in younger times in this region!