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 and why is a reconstruction of Araisi lake fortress being built (LV)?
Āraiši lake fortress was attacked and destroyed in the late 10th century, and was never rebuilt. When the foundations settled and the water level in the lake rose, the building remains and artefacts ended up underwater, and in these anaerobic conditions they were preserved up to the present day...
Could Romans read and write (NL)?
Only the rich were able to afford a private teacher (paedagogus). He would teach young Romans basic reading, writing and arithmetic. At an older age children had to learn famous Roman poems and epic stories by heart...
When did people start to cook in prehistory (I mean more complicated meals, not just roasting or drying) (CZ)?
We cannot say for sure. We presume cooking from the Neolithic on when they started to use ceramic vessels – they prepared various gruels or soups, but it was possible...
Was it really true, in the Iron Age, men hunted and women cooked the food above a camp fire (NL)?
Surely there was a set division of tasks between men and women, more traditional then nowadays. Probably, inside the house, the women were in charge, men outside. Contrasts were important; air - earth, inside - outside, north - south...
Did international trade exist in Poland in the Iron Age (PL)?
Yes indeed, there were "no borders" for trade people. Traces at the Biskupin settlement show there were numerous contacts across Europe and beyond. Just like elsewhere in Europe in Prehistory...
Could I find something in my area as well (CH)?
Maybe! Old objects often are hidden deep under the present surface. To get to them, we need help from dredgers and the work of several archaeologists. However, in seldom cases there are objects which one can find at the surface. Those could be freed by the water or transported to the surface by the farmers' plough. Good luck in your search!
Why did people believe in the Middle Ages, the world was flat (NL)?
Well, far from everybody thought so. It was long before this, Pythagoras (580 - 500 BC) got to the point, the world was round. After him, many people followed - each with own reasons who thought the world was round, even in the Middle Ages...
Could the ornaments in megalithic graves be a rudimentary kind of writing (DE)?
The ornaments which in seldom cases are found in megalithic graves (especially in the Anglo-Irish and the Iberian regions) cannot be seen as an early form of writing. In general we find geometrical elements...
Biskupin is famous in Polish society and still has been brought in connection with Preslavonic tribes, why (PL)?
Prof. J. Kostrzewski created the theory that Biskupin as a settlement of Lusatian Culture had been joined with Preslavs, now this theory has minor significance and we treat Biskupinians just as Indoeuropeans.
What was the most used weapon in the Middle Ages (DK)?
The sword. But else there were trebuchets, bombarders and weapons with gunpowder, by the end of the Middle Ages...