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ARCHEON
LIVING HISTORY
PREHISTORY, ROMAN PERIOD AND MIDDLE AGES
www.
.nl
Archeon is a member of EXARC
European Exchange on Archaeological Research and Communication
15 year VVvA 1996 - 2011
Friends of Archeon Association
The object of the Friends of Archeon Association is to support and propagate the history of the
Netherlands as portrayed in Archeon. All members are ambassadors of Archeon and many of them
are actively involved in Archeon.
For information: www.archeon.nl or E-mail: [email protected]
1
Contents
Welcome to Archeon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 3
The Prehistoric Period – Introduction . . . . . . . . . 4
The Prehistoric Period in Archeon
The Paleolithic Period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 5
The Mesolithic Period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 7
The Neolithic Period . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 9
The Bronze Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 11
The Iron Age . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 13
The Roman Period – introduction . . . . . . . . . . 14
The Roman Period in Archeon . . . . . . . . . . . . . 16
The Bath House . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 22
The Gladiator Games of Archeon . . . . . . . . 26
The Middle Ages – introduction . . . . . . . . . . . . 28
The Middle Ages in Archeon . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 30
Colofon
Park Guide compiled for
Theme Park Archeon
Contributions by:
Prehistory – M. Bloema-de Boer
Roman Period – M. Hansen
Middle Ages – H. ‘t Jong
The late Middle Ages . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 32
The Damstrate (old part of town) . . . . . . . . 32
The ‘Herestrate”(new part of town) . . . . . . . 39
The Monastery . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . 42
Translation- M. Pieterse-Schaake
Photo’s – G. Terberg
C.van der Camp
W. Mes
Cover – Okay Color Alphen aan den Rijn
Printing- Okay Color Alphen aan den Rijn
Theme Park Archeon
Postbox 600
2400 AP Alphen aan den Rijn
The Netherlands
T: 0031172447744
I: www.archeon.nl
Follow us on twitter: @archeon
©Archeon: Nothing from this guide may be used without
authorazation from Archeon (Reprint 2010)
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WELCOME TO ARCHEON!
Dear Visitor,
In Archeon you can meet the Living
History of the Netherlands.
All 43 buildings, farmhouses and huts in our park are
­reconstructions of archaeological finds in the Netherlands.
The reconstructions are inhabited by so-called Archeointerpreters. Dressed in authentic costumes, these people
interpret a particular archaeological period. They are there
for you.
Do not hesitate to ask them your questions about anything
you want to know about a particular time. Join a guided
tour. Our Archeo-interpreters will tell you the fascinating
story of the history of the Netherlands.
But Archeon is not only watching and listening. Archeon is
also: doing things! We invite you to participate in activities
such as canoeing, throwing the javelin, playing a medieval
ballgame and making a Roman fibula. Try on the helmet of
the town guard. Have your fortune told by the priestess at
the Roman temple. Join the sacrificial ceremony for the goddess Nehalennia. Have a Roman massage. Decide about life
and death at the gladiator fight. Remember, ­Archeon should
not just be looked at, Archeon must be experienced!
In addition to all these historical buildings and activities you
will also find a pleasant playground. Refreshments can be
found in our Roman Inn or in our Medieval Monastery.
Both buildings also have toilets. Any business information
can be obtained in our entrance building. Here you will also
find many great souvenirs, among which historical replicas
made by Archeon’s own craftsmen.
This park guide serves only as a handle on your journey
though time. Let yourself be guided by the Archeo-interpreters and your own interest.
The Management and all employees wish you an interesting
and pleasant day in Archeon!
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De Prehistoric Period
(8800 BC – 12 BC): introduction
4
The Old Stone Age or Paleolithic Period
Archaeologists and historians use the term
‘prehistory’ to specify the period of time
from which there are no known written records. The term literally means ‘before history’, i.e. the period before written history.
When did the prehistory in the Netherlands
begin?
Archaeologists study the material left by people in the
ground. The first stone tools were probably made in Tanzania 2.4 million years ago, by a predecessor of Modern Man:
the Homo Habilis, (literally: the handy man).
Dutch archaeology studies the human habitation of this
country, which presumably started some 250,000 years
ago. Although, the people who lived then were different
from ‘Modern Man’. People like us, the Homo Sapiens
type, have lived in Europe for about 40,000 years. There
have been several archaeological finds in the Netherlands
from the period between 250,000 and 14,000 years ago.
However, exactly how people lived scientists do not know.
As since the end of the last ice age this country has been
permanently inhabited, we know much more about this
prehistoric period.
until 8800 BC
The people
The people in the old stone age learnt to make sharp tools
from fragments of flint. This enabled them to cut e.g. wood,
meat and bone. They also made tools from other kinds of
stone and from wood, bone and even from animal teeth.
About 400,000 years ago, people learnt to control fire. This
was an important skill. They used the fire to warm themselves, to keep away dangerous animals and to make food
better digestible by heating it.
People lived from what nature had to offer, in the way
of fruit, roots, berries and other vegetable food. They also
hunted elephants, reindeer, bison, aurochs and horses.
The first signs of human habitation in the Netherlands date
back some 250,000 years. In a quarry in the south of the
Netherlands the remains have been found of a hunting
camp of the predecessors of the Neanderthal people.They
left behind all sorts of flint tools and bones of hunted and
slaughtered animals.
The natural environment
When did the prehistory of the Netherlands
end?
In the year 55 BC the Roman general Gaius Julius Caesar
visited the south of the present-day Netherlands, which
he described, in Latin, in his report of the Gallic war. From
12 BC a large part of this country was part of the Roman
Empire.
This brings the Prehistory to an end, as from that time we
have written records about the Netherlands.
A picture of the prehistory in the Netherlands.
The archaeologist’s task is not an easy one.The picture of the
prehistory is full of gaps and blank spaces. We are dependent
on more or less accidental finds which form only a small piece
of the puzzle. After years of preparation and combining the
latest scientific views Archeon gives a picture of the prehistory of the Netherlands.This picture is an interpretation; after
all, we do not know exactly how these people lived. However,
we try in Archeon to give the best picture to be given at this
moment and we keep adjusting
In the course of time there have been colder and warmer
periods. During the cold periods, the Ice Ages, the Netherlands changed into a kind of tundra.The forests disappeared
and made way for an overgrowth of grasses and shrubs.
The Arctic ice caps expanded and the sea level dropped.
The Ice Ages alternated with warmer periods in which the
ice melted, the sea level rose and the forests returned.
The last Ice Age was between 50,000 and 10,000 years
ago. The tundra-like land was inhabited by musk oxen, bison, mammoths, reindeer, woolly rhinos, horses, elks and
lemmings. The people who lived then in the North-West
of Europe were called the ‘big game hunters’. They lived
a nomadic life and hunted among others large herds of
reindeer.
The Management and all employees wish you an interesting
and pleasant day in Archeon!
5
The Prehistoric Period
In Archeon
6
After about 10,000 BC the climate gradually became warmer again. Many of the big
animals went with the cold weather to the
North. Some animals, like the mammoth,
elk, woolly rhino and bison became extinct.
Gradually, the Netherlands were covered
with forests, which were rich in animals
and plants. These changes were the beginning of a new age: the Middle Stone Age.
It is with this period that the prehistory in
Archeon begins.
In addition to the Middle Stone Age hunting camp, you can
visit dwellings from the New Stone Age, the Bronze Age
and the Iron Age.
The Middle Stone Age or Mesolithic Period
8800 BC to 5300 BC
About 8800 BC the last Ice Age came to an end. The Arctic ice caps melted, causing the sea level and water table to
rise. Swamps, rivers and lakes appeared and tundra regions
changed into vast areas of forest. Because of the changing climate other species of animals and plants appeared
in the Netherlands. Slowly, this brought about a different
way of life.
Because there was now so much food to be found in a
relatively small area, people were now able to stay longer
in one place. They lived as hunters, caught fish and gathered wild plants and herbs. They hunted moose, wild boars,
brown bears, beavers and deer.
Another characteristic of the period is that the flint tools
became more refined.
1 Object of interest
One of the many reconstructions in Archeon. The number
corresponds with the number
on the Archeon map.
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1
In the huntergatherers camp you can make
music with various stone age
instruments.
Camp of the Hunter-Gatherers
The oldest settlement in Archeon is based on finds in the
north of this country, where archaeologists found the remains of a small hunting camp near a small lake. The three
reconstructed huts in Archeon are based on data from
various excavations at this site.
They are simple constructions, easy to put up, consisting
of a framework of flexible branches covered with reeds or
hides. The hunter-gatherers probably did not live permanently in these huts. For instance, in autumn they moved
to the edge of the forest, where many hazelnuts were to
be found.
Tools were made from flint, wood, bone and antlers. The
flint tools were more refined than in the Old Stone Age.
They were made from small pieces of flint, set next to each
other in a handle of bone, antler or wood, with the aid of
birch tar or resin. If a piece of flint was broken it could easily
be replaced.
At the small lake you
can have a go, at your
own risk, in a log canoe.
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2
Log canoes
The hunter-gatherers were fishermen too. They fished in
dugout canoes, using fish traps and spears.The canoes were
also used as a means of transport. The oldest log canoe in
the world dates from 6500 BC and was found in the east of
the Netherlands. One way of making a canoe like this was
by burning in a tree trunk with live coal and then hollowing
it out with a stone axe.
The New Stone Age or the Neolithic Period
5300 to 2000 BC
A new way of life began with the arrival of
the first farmers: the new Stone Age (Neolithic Period). Agriculture and cattle breeding enabled people to get more food out of
a small environment. Agriculture originates
in the Middle East and reached this country
via south-eastern Europe.
In the north and west of the Netherlands people still lived
mostly as hunters and gatherers.There, the transition to the
agricultural life was a slow process. After all, old customs do
not disappear easily. Besides, a farmer had to work hard and
not all soil is suitable for agriculture.
The first farmers settled on the fertile loess soil in the very
south of this country.
They grew wheat, peas, lentils, poppy and flax. Besides, they
had their livestock of cows, sheep, goats and pigs.
Opposite the farmhouse, next to the monastery garden
is a half-open house. This building is not always open to
visitors. It is used by Archeon as an educational room for
(school) groups.
The First Farmers or
the Linear Pottery Culture.
3
Contrary to the hunter-gatherers, the farmers remained
in one place. The farmhouse in Archeon is typical for the
architectural style of the first farmers. They built large farmhouses of oak with walls of loam. The roof was made of
straw or strips of bark, as in these loamy areas there was
not enough reed to be found, for thatching such a large
surface. People often lived together in small villages.
The farmers introduced a new material in the Netherlands:
earthenware. They made beautifully decorated pottery,
which they used for cooking, fetching water or for storing provisions. Archaeologists have named the culture of
these early farmers after the distinctive linear and spiral
decorations they made on their pottery: the Linear Pottery
Culture.
This earthenware was made by hand and fired in an open
fire.
9
4 Funnel-Beaker Culture
Around 3500 BC farmers also appeared on the higher
sandy grounds in the north and the east of the Netherlands. They grew grain and kept cattle but also continued
to hunt and fish. These farmers belonged to the FunnelBeaker Culture. They too, were named after their pottery.
In the house are examples of funnel-beakers.
Together with the
Funnel-Beaker farmer
(or his wife) you can try to
move the dolmen boulder.
The Funnel-Beaker people lived in large parts of northwestern Europe, from the Netherlands to Poland and the
south of Sweden. As we have not (yet) found any traces of
dwellings from this period in the Netherlands, we have reconstructed a farmhouse found in the north-German town
of Flögeln (just across the present-day border).
5
Megalithic Tomb
The megalithic tombs are the best known archaeological monuments in this country. We now know that they
were made by the farmers of the Funnel-Beaker Culture.
The barrows were communal burial chambers, used for
generations to inter the dead. The dead were often buried
with special gifts such as flint arrow heads, stone axes and
especially, with lots of beautiful pottery. The pots may have
contained food for the journey to the hereafter. However,
this has never been found as all vegetable material has decayed.
For the building of the tombs people used large boulders
left here in the second last Ice Age. In many places in Eu-
The farmhouse has several small rooms. At one corner the
roof is supported by a piece of granite instead of a post. In
the small room at the back a pit was found, containing two
pots and an amber bead. This may have been a grave. The
middle part of the house was used as a living room.
rope the people of the New Stone Age used these large
boulders to build tombs. Not only in the Netherlands, Denmark and Germany but also in Ireland, Spain and France.
Originally, megalithic tombs did not look as bare as the
ones that can still be seen in the north-east of the country.
They were covered by an earthen mound and only the
tops of the large covering stones were visible. Around the
mound was often a circle of smaller stones.
The megalithic tomb in Archeon is a small one. The largest
tomb in the Netherlands is in the province of Drenthe and
measures 22.5 meters. The largest boulders can weigh as
much as 23,000 kilos.
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At the end of the New Stone Age the first
metal objects appeared in this country.
They were jewellery and tools made of copper. They were, however, very rare. Around
2000 BC bronze was introduced. This is the
beginning of the Bronze Age in the Netherlands. Bronze is a mixture of copper and
tin. As the material is tougher than stone,
tools do not break as quickly as those
made of stone. If they did, they could easily
be melted down to new objects.
Copper and tin, however, were not found in the Netherlands. By means of barter trade the bronze had to be imported from Great Britain and southern Germany. It was an
expensive material, that not everyone could afford. That is
why even in the Bronze Age stone remained an important
raw material.
The Bronze Age
2000 to 800 BC
6
Bronze Age farmhouse
The Bronze Age farmhouse is made of ash and alder-wood.
The walls are made of sods and the roof is thatched with
straw. Dug round the house is a drainage ditch. In this type
of farmhouse people and cattle lived under the same roof.
From the Bronze Age to the 19th century this was quite a
normal way of living.
Mixed farming, at which cattle breeding and agriculture
supported each other, originated in the Bronze Age. Cattle
provided the manure for the fields and the pulling power
for e.g. the plough. The fields provided, among others, the
feed for the animals. The Bronze Age farmers grew wheat,
barley, millet, peas and flax. They also kept cows, sheep,
goats and pigs. Hunting and fishing were no longer important for the food supply.
In winter the cattle
were stalled in the
farmhouse. The stable part of a
Bronze Age farm often housed
an average of 20-30 head of
cattle.
11
The axe and the arrow
are dangerous weapons.
They were originally
created as tools. In the Bronze
Age for the first time an object
was made that was meant to
be used purely as a weapon: the
sword.
7
Bronze foundry
Although at the beginning of the Bronze Age tools, weapons and jewellery were imported ready-made from
abroad, people soon began to produce bronze products
locally. Worn and broken objects were melted down and
shaped into new ones. To be able to cast bronze it has to
be heated to a temperature between 1100 - 1200°C. This
temperature could be reached by using charcoal and bellows. The liquid bronze was then poured into a mould of
clay or stone. When it had cooled down, the new object
had to be touched up or, if necessary, sharpened and provided with a handle or helve.
The Bargeroosterveld
Santuary
8
In the peat bog near the town of Bargeroosterveld in the
north-east of the country, the remains were found of a
wooden structure.This small construction consisted of four
posts resting on foundation planks which were connected
at the top by horizontal beams. The pointed ends of the
beams look a bit like cow’s horns.
The building was presumably used as a sanctuary. However,
it may even have been some sort of sign post on the peat
bog causeways. Or – by analogy with finds in Ireland and
Wales – a burial place.
The small log path through the fields leads to the sacred
place in the peat bog. Long before the Bronze Age in this
country, people used log causeways through the peat bogs.
The bogs and marshes
were mysterious places.
Ever since the New
Stone Age people had
made sacrifices to gods,
spirits or ancestors in or
near the peat bogs. In
the Bronze Age special
objects were left behind
in the bogs, such as jewellery, weapons and even
people.
12
The earliest signs of the use of iron in this
country date from the Bronze Age. On a
timber footpath through the peat bog in
the north-east of the country a small iron
pin was found, dating from approx. 1350
BC. From about 800 BC iron became a common raw material for tools and weapons.
Iron is tougher and harder than bronze and, what is more,
it stays sharp for a long time. Another advantage is that the
raw material for iron, bog ore, is found in the Netherlands.
Consequently, iron objects must have been easier to get
than bronze tools. In order to melt iron a temperature of
over 1500°C is needed. Cast iron, however, is too fragile for
tools, so iron objects were not cast but forged. The introduction of iron did not mean that bronze disappeared altogether Especially for the production of jewellery bronze
continued to be a popular material.
The Iron Age
800 to 12 BC
9
Mound farmhouses
These Iron Age farmhouses are reconstructions of finds
in the north of this country. The farmhouses stood on a
small mound. Because the salt marsh area in the north
was flooded regularly, people settled on naturally higher
grounds. When the sea level kept rising, even these high
places could not offer sufficient protection against the sea.
The inhabitants raised their hills with sods of turf from the
surrounding area. Each time the hills became larger and
larger. Sometimes several hillocks grew together, forming
one big mound.
On the higher salt marshes the farmers grew barley, flax, a
kind of rape and beans. More important was cattle breeding. The salt marshes were excellent pasture lands. The
farmhouses are built with oak and ash. The walls consist of
wattle-and-daub. It has a thatched roof.
End of Iron Age?
Historically seen, the Iron Age came to an end with the
arrival of the Romans. This is not entirely true. The way of
life in the Iron Age was not replaced by the ‘Roman’ culture
overnight. To the Romans, this country was just a cold and
wet border area, which was not much use to them. Besides,
the area north of the River Rhine was never really part of
the Roman Empire anyway. There, the Iron Age continued
as usual.
Even in the south, which did belong to the Roman Empire,
the life of the common people may not have changed all
that much. Romanising, i.e. taking over Roman elements by
the native people, was mainly a matter of the local upper class. Therefore, the majority of the ‘Dutch’ population
probably continued with their ‘iron’ customs right through
the Roman period.
13
The Roman Period
(12 BC – 406 AD): introduction
14
From 58 to 50 BC Gaius Julius Caesar conquered the whole of Gaul. In the year 55 BC
he and his legions also paid a visit to the
south of this country. We know this from
‘the report of the Gallic war’, which Caesar wrote for the senate of Rome. Because
he happened to write down something
about his short stay in this country, this
ended the prehistoric period of the Netherlands. However, this lightning visit was
not the beginning of the Roman Period in
this country, for having sorted things out,
he left again. In real terms, it meant that
a large part of the native population had
been killed by Caesar.
After Caesar’s legions had left, the Germanic tribe of the
Batavians occupied the vacant areas. They were Caesar’s
allies and protected for him part of the area conquered
by the Romans, against other Germanic tribes. At that time
the south of the Netherlands was part of the Roman province of Gallia Belgica.
The Romans settle in the Netherlands
It was not until the year 12 BC that the Romans actually
settled in this country. Drusus, Emperor Augustus’ stepson,
arrived with a great army at the ‘island of the Batavians’.
From here he wanted to fight the Germanic tribes in Germany. This is the beginning of the Roman Period of the
Netherlands. The oldest wooden forts in the Netherlands
date from this period.
400 years of Roman influences
The Romans stayed here for about four centuries. Initially,
they were an occupying force. Every now and then the
native population revolted against the Romans. The best
known uprising is the one of the Batavians, led by Julius Civilis in the year AD 69. During the greater part of the Roman
occupation, however, the relationship between Romans and
the local population was very good. Consequently, people
in the Netherlands became acquainted with the GreekRoman culture.
For the Romans in the Netherlands life was quite different from their lifestyle in Italy. To them this area was just
a wasteland at the edges of the earth. A place where the
uncivilised Germanic and Celtic tribes lived. What is more,
they were in fact forever situated in a military zone. And
of course, there was the cold weather. Silk togas are fine
in sunny Rome but highly unpractical in our wet climate. In
this country it was more a provincial Roman culture with
Celtic and Germanic adaptations and influences.
Alphen aan den Rijn:
The old castellum Albanianae
Through archaeological finds we know that there once was
a Roman army camp in what is now the centre of Alphen
aan den Rijn. This camp was called Albanianae. Presumably,
it was the camp of a cohort (a subdivision of the legion),
consisting of about 500 soldiers. Probably, this division consisted of foot soldiers and cavalrymen. Archaeologists think
that Albanianae was built around AD 40. This was during
The Romans considered
trousers to be a garment
for women. The native
population had a different
opinion about that: there, it was
quite normal for both men and
women to wear trousers.
the time that the emperor
Claudius wanted to start his
conquest of Britain from this
area. Also, in the nearby town
of Zwammerdam was another
army camp, called Nigrum Pullum. It is, among other things,
because of these facts that Archeon is situated in Alphen aan
den Rijn.
In AD 47, Emperor Claudius made an end to the not always
successful Roman conquests in Germania. He decreed that
the River Rhine was to be the northern border of the
Roman Empire, which made the Netherlands part of the
military border region: the Limes. A belt of military forts
was lain along the River Rhine.
Later on, about AD 100, the Netherlands became part of
the province of Germania Inferior.
The capital was Colonia Claudia Ara Agrippinensis, present-day Cologne. The Dutch town of Nijmegen served as
army town for several Roman legions.
15
The Roman Period
in Archeon
16
During the Roman period the River Rhine in
the Netherlands formed the official northern border of the Roman Empire. According
to the Romans civilization ended on the
other side of the River Rhine. The Roman
settlements on the Rhine were mainly of
a military nature. Although, around many
military settlements native villages arose.
The native people tried to make a living by
selling their products and services to the
legionaries. In time, the Roman legionaries and native people began to adopt each
other’s customs and practices, thus creating a Gallo-Roman and Germanic-Roman
culture.
Roman Gate
(entrance gate of Archeon)
10
The first Roman construction of Archeon is not ín Traiectum ad Rhenum, as it is the big Roman gate serving as
entrance gate to Archeon. This gate is a reconstruction of
part of a gate of a Roman fort (castellum). This fort stood
in the town of Valkenburg (near The Hague) between AD
40 and 240. It was one of the forts of the Limes, the northern border of the Roman Empire.
Roman citizens were
given three names:
a first name, a family name
and a nickname.
Caesar’s full name was:
Gaius Julius Caesar.
So his nickname, like his
ancestors, was Caesar, which
means ‘curly’.
Traiectum ad Rhenum
In Archeon the Roman Period of the Netherlands is
brought to life in a Gallo-Roman border village. It is called
Traiectum ad Rhenum (ford at the Rhine). In the village are
reconstructions of buildings, excavated at various locations
in the Netherlands. The time is around AD 150, during the
reign of Emperor Anthony Pius. A peaceful period of economic and cultural prosperity.
17
10
Roman town house
(Domus)
, Roman Period most people in this country lived
During the
in the countryside. Only a small part of the population lived
in the towns.The richest citizens lived in big luxurious houses (villae). Tradesmen and craftsmen lived in town. They
lived in much simpler houses, like the one reconstructed in
Traiectum ad Rhenum.
This town house (Domus) is based on an excavation in the
town of Voorburg (near The Hague). In the 2nd century this
town was the site of a Roman town called Forum Hadriani
(named after the Emperor Hadrian).
Potter
The potter works in the front part of the house. On the
potter’s wheel the potter makes all kinds of pottery. The
Romans introduced the potter’s wheel. The local inhabitants still made handmade pottery.
Behind the workshop is a kitchen and a small dining room.
In Roman times, the upper floor was often let to all kinds of
18
strange lodgers (at the moment this is where the Archeon
office is located..).
In the yard is a small wood-fired kiln. Many Roman potters’ kilns have been found in the Netherlands. The kiln in
Archeon is only a small one. Around the town of Nijmegen
were kilns in which hundreds of roof-tiles could be fired at
the same time. Roof-tiles often carried the stamp of the
relevant military unit. Most tiles found in Alphen aan den
Rijn carry the stamp EXGERINF: Exercitus Germania Inferior. This was the Lower Germanic army, a division of native
auxiliary troops of the Roman legions.
The earthenware industry was an important part of the
Roman economy in the provinces. Thanks to the stamps
(signatures) of the manufacturers, we know exactly were
the pottery was made. A lot of pottery found in the Netherlands for instance, came from the south of France and
from Germany. Often plates and bowls were provided with
the names of both the craftsman and the owner.
12
Roman herb garden
Next to the Roman house is the herb garden. In and around
this garden are some 50 varieties of plants which used to
grow in this country in Roman times. Many varieties were
imported by the Romans because they were an essential
part of Roman cuisine.
In the garden is a bust of the goddess Ceres, the Roman
goddess of harvest and crops. Moreover, she is the tutelary
deity of the common people, the ‘plebs’ and therefore, she
must feel quite at home in the potter’s garden.
13-15
Gallo-Roman
Temple complex
The Romans were very religious people. They believed the
conquests of the Roman legions to be a reward from the
gods. Besides, the emperors saw themselves as descendants
of the gods. A Roman could not imagine a life without the
gods. Rituals such as offerings, vows and spells were part
of daily life.
In general, the Romans were tolerant of the religious beliefs
of the peoples they had conquered. The only thing they
would demand of the native population was to worship the
official Roman state gods as well, next to their own gods. As
the Germans and Celts themselves believed in several gods,
this melting of religions was no problem. Often the native
people even adopted Roman rituals in their own cult. The
word ‘templum’ means sacred place. The temple was often
not one building but consisted of a whole complex with
several parts. The temple complex in Archeon consists of
a walled courtyard, a pillar dedicated to Jupiter, an annex
(all found in Maastricht) and a main building (found, among
others, in Cuijk).
13
Calendar (Fasti)
On the wall of the gate of the temple complex, the oldest
religious calendar of the Romans can be seen. It is a lunar
calendar of twelve moons (months). Every now and then a
thirteenth month was added. A year consisted of 355 days.
It was not until 45 BC that Julius Caesar introduced a solar
year of 365 days, with once every four years a leap month.
Two months of our year, July and August, were named after
the Roman general Julius Caesar and the Roman Emperor
Augustus. In the old calendar these months were called
Quintilis and Sextilis. Around 200 fragments of Roman calendars have been found. The calendars are known as ‘fasti’.
The ‘working days’ of a calendar are also called ‘fasti’. The
holidays are called ‘nefasti’.
Some plants were also
used for their healing
effects.
Sometimes plants were used to
diagnose. For example,
someone who had a stomach
wound was made to drink
strong onion soup. If the onion
smell came out of the wound,
they knew that the intestines or
the stomach of injured person
were damaged.
19
14
Jupiter pillar
The supreme god Jupiter represents the Roman religion in
the temple complex. He was the father of light, lord of the
thunder, the father and king of the gods. He was also the
protector of Rome.
The letters I.O.M on the pillar stand for: Iovi Optimo
Maximo, to Jupiter, the Best, the Highest. Such pillars are
often found in the former Germania Inferior and Germania
Superior. The pillars were probably erected by Romanised
Germans. Archaeologists think that these pillars are signs
that the people no longer saw themselves as Germans but
as Roman citizens.
Every day, a Roman offering ceremony is held
in the temple complex. Come
and see for yourself
how the Romans try to influence
the will of the gods.
Romans would also
come to the temple
for divine prophesies. Ask the
priestess to see what the future
has in store for you.
20
Temple of Nehalennia
(cella, statue and votive
15
stones)
The goddess Nehalennia represents the native part of the
temple complex. She is the most important goddess worshipped in the temple. For her the main building, the actual
temple was built. It consists of one room; the cella.
The main building is a high worship area, surrounded by a
colonnade (portico). These four colonnades are typical for
temples in Gaul and Germania Inferior. The cella was the
domain of the goddess. Only the priest(ess) and the goddess herself were allowed to enter this room.
Against the wall of the temple are a number of votive
stones, dedicated to the goddess Nehalennia. These are
rectangular stones, often with the picture of the god or
goddess and the name of the donor. A votive stone was a
Roman way of saying thank-you, a way in which a Roman
redeemed his vow to the god or goddess. The thank-you
often ended with the formula ‘Votum Solvit Libens (Laetus)
Merito: He has redeemed his vow, of his own free will (with
pleasure) and with reason.
The stones in the colonnaded are replicas of stones fished
out of the water along the Dutch coast. The authentic
stones can be found, among others, in the National Museum of Antiquities in Leiden. The votive stones are mostly
donations from tradesmen and seamen.
The number of stones found suggests quite a Nehalennia
cult in this country. One Gallo-Roman temple dedicated to
Nehalennia is said to have been near the coast of Domburg
(in the province of Zeeland). In the course of time, the
shore crumbled away and the temple fell into the sea.
The Germanic-Celtic origin of the
goddess can be recognized in her
clothes and hair style. Her typical
cape (pelerine) with large brooch
is not Roman. We do not know exactly what function Nehalennia had
for the Romans and native people.
She may have been a fertility goddess, worshipped in connection
with the harvest. She was also worshipped by tradesmen and seamen.
18
Well
At the cross-roads is a well, in which the rain water is collected. Every block (insula) in a Roman town had its own
well. Next to the well is a statue of a Greek cupbearer. In
big Roman towns public wells were a necessity. The statues
at these wells often served as street signs. It would have
been quite normal to say things like: ‘I live near the well with
the two lions’, or ‘See you at the tortoise’.
19
Sundial
Considering its public function, the forum should not be
without a proper sundial (horologium). The horologium is
decorated with the sun and the moon and a sun-wheel or
wheel of fortune. Of course, there is also a picture of Saturn, the god of time. A Roman day was a ‘daylight day’. The
first hour started at dawn and the twelfth hour of the day
ended when it became dark at night. The length of these
hours depended on the season.
16
Feel what it is like to
march as a soldier in
the Roman army.
A Roman soldier served 25
years.
Fortunately, you will be allowed
to leave the army sooner than
that!
The Forum
At the crossroads of the two main roads is the Forum, the
central space of every Roman town.
The Forum was a multi-purpose open space, a place for
meeting people or for holding markets. Farmers, craftsmen
and merchants came her to sell their products.
17
Rostra
The forum was also a suitable place for holding all sorts
of public gatherings, e.g. meetings and legal disputes. Politicians and speakers would then speak to the people from
a platform, known as the ‘Rostra’. The original platform at
the forum of Rome had been composed of the battering
rams of enemy ships. This was the place where the consuls
of Rome addressed the citizens of their town.
21
20
Roman cargo ship
At the back of the temple complex lies a Roman cargo ship.
This ship is a replica of one of the six ships excavated in the
nearby town of Zwammerdam in 1972.
In Roman times this kind of ship was usually built in the
south of Germany. They were used for the transport of
building materials, grain and other goods. Because of their
small draught and flat bow these ships were able to moor
on any bank without having to use quays. In the course
of time, the position and the depth of the rivers changed
quite often. The shape of the ship prevented it from running aground on a sandbank.
21
Crane
The Romans knew various kinds of cranes. They were used,
for instance, in the construction of high stone buildings, but
also for loading and unloading ships.
Members of the Friends of Archeon Association have built
a simple version in Archeon.The crane consists of two standards and a number of cross connections. Together they
form an A-shape, kept upright by two or more ropes. The
timber construction hangs at an angle of 60º. By using a system with five pulley wheels, the force necessary for hoisting
heavy loads can be reduced. To hoist 40 kg one now needs
a pulling power of 10 kg.
Public bath house
22
Situated at the forum is the bath house (thermae).The bath
house of Traiectum ad Rhenum is based on excavations in
the town of Heerlen in the south of the Netherlands. The
original foundations can still be seen in the ‘Thermenmuseum’ in Heerlen. The bath house was probably built in the
first part of the 2nd century and was in use until about
400 AD.
Bathing culture
Health and hygiene were always very important to the
Romans. After all, a sound mind lives in a sound body. By
cleansing the body one was also working on one’s spiritual
well-being. Bathing was a very important activity, for which
Romans would really take their time. Next to hygiene, the
baths also had a social function. It was a place to meet
people, to hear the latest news or gossips, to do business
or discuss the political situation. The baths were open to all
citizens of a settlement. The entrance fee was low, so that
most people were able to afford a visit to the bath house.
There were special hours for men, women and the elderly
22
and the sick, The fact that, at one stage during his reign, the
Emperor Hadrian declared a ban on this mixed bathing,
proves that this rule was not always strictly observed.
Underfloor heating
Roman bath houses were heated by a very ingenious heating system, called a hypocaust. This system is a classic example of an optimal use of energy. In the stoke room (fornicatorium) behind the hot bath, a large wood fire was stoked
in a furnace. Over the furnace was a huge, bronze tank for
heating the water of the hot bath. The water poured into
the baths through gutters. But the real secret of the bath
house is the heating of floors and walls. The floor was built
on piles of tiles, creating an open space underneath the
floor. The hot air from the ‘fornicatorium’ travelled under
the floor and through the hollow tiles in the walls.
Ask the masseuse (unctrix) to tell you
the secrets of the Roman
massage.
Feel the Roman scraper: the
strigil!
A visit to the bath house
We do not know exactly in which order the Romans used
the various bathing areas. There is a description by the
physician Galenus. He advised his readers to warm up the
body slowly and then slowly let it cool down again.
A visit to the baths started in the changing room (apodyterium). Here they put their clothes in the special niches (loculi) and paid the fee (balneaticum) to the baths attendant.
23
to 60º C. The cold water in the black, round basins could
be used for cooling down between times.
23
Amphitheatre
Next to the bath house is the (semicircular) amphitheatre
of Traiectum ad Rhenum. The central space in the amphitheatre is called the ‘arena’. The word ‘arena’ literally means
‘sand’, but a second meaning is ‘the sand-covered central
area of an amphitheatre’. The Arena was the area where
the gladiator fights or animal fights were held.
At the end of the day the
gladiator fights are held
in the amphitheatre. Spectacular and instructive but maybe
just a little bit too exciting for
the little ones.
Before starting the actual bathing they, particularly the men,
would do athletic exercises or play ball games in the inner
courtyard (palaestra). Sport was a way to cleans one’s inner self and to begin warming up the body.
In Archeon, in the right-hand corner of the courtyard is
the Roman toilet (latrina). In Roman times the communal
toilets at the bath house would have been flushed with the
water used in the baths. The front of the seat was open
enabling the Romans to use the sponge stick; the Roman
version of toilet paper. The sponge could be rinsed in the
small gutter in the floor in front of the toilets.
In the bath house they could enjoy the various baths and
visit the sauna. Sport and the variety of temperatures were
thought to be very healthy. There were masseurs and people could buy all sorts of oils
and ointments.
In the bath house of Heerlen, the rooms were situated
in a row: the cold bath (frigidarium), the sweating room
(sudatorium), the tepid bath
(tepidarium) and the hot bath
(caldarium). The tepid bath is
a room without baths, where
the skin could be cleansed and
one could have a massage. It
is a room to cool down, relax,
chat or play games.
The water of the hot bath
could reach temperatures up
24
Usually, the first thing people think of when they hear the
words ‘amphitheatre’ and ‘arena’, is the Colosseum in Rome.
This, however, was a unique building. Outside Rome amphitheatres usually were much simpler constructions. Often,
they were built of wood. The only amphitheatre found in
the Netherlands stood in the town of Nijmegen. Although
it was probably made of stone, the Archeon amphitheatre
is not. This one is based on the Roman tradition of building
temporary amphitheatres of wood and with sandy banks.
In a simple settlement like Traiectum ad Rhenum this would
have been more likely than one made of stone.
24
Inn
Roman inns initially had a military function. From Rome all
kinds of orders from the Emperors had to be dispersed all
through the Empire. This was done by military couriers on
horseback. They followed the famous Romans roads (viae)
and stayed in resting places like these inns. (praetoria) On
presentation of his military passport (diploma) a courier
was given a fresh horse, a meal and a bed.
In Latin an Inn was called: praetorium, mansio or hospitium.
The Inn in Archeon is largely used as restaurant and can be
used for parties, meetings, conferences etc.
Romans did not drink
their wine straight:
that was barbaric.
They diluted the wine with
water.
25
Triclinium
Try a glass of hot or
cold honey wine
(mulsum)!
At the ground floor the Inn has a special Roman dining
room with beautifully painted walls: the triclinium. In a
triclinium the Romans would have dinner (cena). During
the meal the Romans would recline on three couches, put
together in a U-shape. The name ‘triclinium’ means ‘three
couches’.
After the actual meal the gentlemen began their drinkingbouts. Hence, the beautifully decorated walls with the
theme of the grape harvest; Bacchus, the god of wine, inspecting the grapes. The original paintings were found in a
Roman house in Cologne.
If, after the meal, they found themselves to be a bit shaky
in their sandals, they could always make use of the small
bedroom next to the triclinium.
25
The Gladiator fights of Archeon
be a very expensive matter. Of course, the organizing family
wanted to make the prestige of the deceased as big as possible. However, soon Roman patricians began to use these
commemorations of the dead to enlarge the prestige of
In Traiectum ad Rhenum, in the Roman part
of Archeon, is the semicircular amphitheatre, where daily a spectacular gladiator fight takes place. From all Roman
traditions these gladiator fights
have made the biggest impression.
To the Romans however, a gladiator
fight was much more than just a
round of bloody entertainment.
Bread and circuses.
After the gladiator
fight all visitors over
11 will be invited to the free
feast.
Origin:
a tribute or offering to the dead.
The Romans probably adopted the gladiator
fight from their Campanian neighbours in the south, or
from the Etruscans.These Italic tribes used to hold combats
at funerals of important army commanders. The first gladiator fight (munus) was held in Rome in the year 264 BC.
The sons of Iunius Brutus Pera organised the fight for their
father’s funeral. The fights were probably a tribute to the
dead but some scientists believe that the fight was a blood
sacrifice to the spirit (manes) of the deceased.
From worship of the dead to political
spectacle
Organizing a ‘munus’ in honour of a dead person used to
the living relatives as well. In that case, the munus ‘just happened’ to coincide with the time that a son of the deceased
was putting himself forward for some important political
post. Gaius Julius Caesar was very good in using this kind of
electoral stunts to his own advantage. During his election
time he organised a spectacular munus in honour of his
daughter who had died seven year before.
In the course of time, the influence of wealthy citizens
increased. More and more the Emperor’s means of propaganda were applied by citizens as well. In organizing gladiator fights wealthy citizens tried to win over the voters.
In time, Emperor Augustus imposed some restraints on
the uncontrolled increase in gladiator fights. Thus, in Rome
the Emperor became the only person allowed to organize
gladiator fights. The ‘munus gladiatorium’ became an exclusive means of propaganda for the Emperor. By placing the
gladiator’s fate in the hands of the people the supreme
Emperor could show his ‘democratic’ side.
In Roman provinces such as Germania Inferior the gladiator
fight was also of political importance. But in the provinces
the Emperor was not the only one who was allowed to organize a gladiator fight. Wealthy citizens too, were allowed
to act as ‘giver of the games (editor muneris). Yet, even in
the provinces the fight was often connected to the Emperor cult.
26
The fight showed the people that the Roman power in these provinces could decide
about life and death. And that did not just apply
to the gladiators in the arena.
Who were the gladiators?
Originally, gladiators had been the ‘infames’ (those without
honour).They were condemned slaves, prisoners-of-war or
criminals. They were regarded as the ‘social dead’. They had
lost all their rights. But instead of being killed immediately
after their sentence, they were given one chance to escape
death. They were sold to a ‘lanista’, a trainer of gladiators.
This ‘lanista’ made the gladiators train in his school with all
kinds of weapons. This way, the gladiators became experts
in fighting and killing. When the gladiators had had sufficient
training they were sold or hired out , by the ‘lanista’, to the
organizer (editor) of the fight.
The attitude of the crowd towards the gladiators was rather ambivalent. On the one hand they were regarded as the
lowest of the dregs of society, on the other hand they
were admired for their courage and power. Gladiators
could be very popular. They were depicted on oil lamps,
dishes and on mosaics. There were even civilians who volunteered for a life as gladiator. These so-called ‘auctorati’
did not only fight for honour, but also because they had
financial problems. After five years in the arena, the gladiator received a ‘rudis’, a wooden sword. Whereupon, he
became a free man again and could try to resume a normal
life. Many gladiators became trainers or hired themselves
out as bodyguards to wealthy Romans.
The word ‘Gladiator’ means ‘sword fighter’. It is derived
from the Latin word for short stabbing sword: gladius.
Fighters with other kinds of weapons were also called
‘gladiators’. The Romans loved to see a heavily armed but
cumbersome gladiator fight against a swift, light gladiator.
Having each been given a different kind of weapon, both
gladiators had a different technical advantage. This made
the fight more exciting and less predictable.
The sword of the
Romans is called
a Gladius
27
The Middle Ages
(AD 406 – 1500): introduction
28
The term ‘Middle Ages’ was first thought
of by southern-European scientists around
AD 1400. They greatly admired the classical civilization. According to them this
civilization had disappeared from Europe
around the year 400, following the end of
the West-Roman Empire. From 1350 there
was a renewed interest in southern Europe
in the Roman civilization. It was a kind of
‘rebirth’ or ‘Renaissance’ of the admired
example. These enlightened people saw the
‘Middle Ages’ as a ‘dark’ and uncivilized inbetween period. However, during the 1000
years between the Roman Period and the
Renaissance, the knowledge of the classical
Antiquity had not disappeared altogether.
The Early Middle Ages
After the Romans retreated in 406 the power in the southern areas of this country was assumed by the Franks. They
were already living in this area and were better organized
than the surrounding tribes. Each Frankish king governed his
own little domain, called in the vernacular a ‘gau’. The descendents of the Frankish king Merovech, the Merovingians,
were such kings. The Merovingian king Clovis conquered
among others, the Netherlands, Belgium and large parts of
present-day France. At the end of the seventh century the
power of the Merovingian kings began to dwindle. More
and more the mayors of the palace gained ascendancy.
Eventually, in AD 751 the last mayor of the palace was recognized by the pope as king of the Franks. His name was
Pepin III, nicknamed the Short. Pepin’s son and successor
Charles, nicknamed the Great (Charlemagne) expanded
the Frankish Empire. His influence was so great that in the
year 800 the pope crowned him Emperor of the Holy Roman Empire. The Carolingian Period is named after Charles
the Great. In 870 the Carolingian Empire broke up into two
parts. From the old empire arose the western realm of the
Franks, which had its own king and the eastern realm which
continued to be ruled by the emperor.
From that year, the Netherlands officially fell under the
German Empire. At the end of the Early Middle Ages the
feudal system was formed. Knights were professional soldiers in the service of a count. Purchasing weapons and
a suit of armour and keeping horses were very expensive
things. In order to give the knights some financial support,
the count often gave them a piece of land as a loan. As lord
of a vassalage the knight (also called a ‘vassal’) was entitled
to levy taxes.
The Late Middle Ages
Between AD 1000 and 1200 the produce from the land
increased because of improved agricultural methods. Living
conditions improved, the population grew and new land
was needed. Reclamation of the peat bogs created new
arable land. Also, as a result of the growing international
trade, towns began to develop. Merchants became wealthy
and even began to have a strong hold on the count, who
was always in need of money. Through these developments the towns and their inhabitants became more and
more powerful. The Dutch vassal domains were becoming independent states, ruled by counts. Brabant, however,
was ruled by a duke and in the bishopric of Utrecht it was
the bishop who had the power. But these monarchs could
not be everywhere at the same time. Therefore, they appointed bailiffs in the various ‘countries’ and ‘sheriffs’ in the
towns and villages.
In 1345 William IV, Count of Holland, died in a campaign
against the Friesians. He was succeeded by his sister Margaret, who was married to the German Emperor Louis
the Bavarian. When this empress returned to Germany in
1346, she temporarily devolved her powers to her son William. Dutch vassals, who did not want to have a woman on
the throne, seized the opportunity to influence the young
count William V. Their interference with William V’s reign
caused a conflict between mother and son which was to
last until 1354.
Many Dutch vassals and towns got involved in these quarrels. With intervals, the struggle was to last until 1489.
29
The Middle Ages
In Archeon
30
Archeon has opted to revive two periods
of the Middle Ages. The first period is early
medieval and shows buildings of around AD
800. The second period concerns the late
Middle Ages. In ‘Gravendam’, Archeon’s
late medieval town, time stood still in
1350.
26 Dorestad Barn
Between the medieval town and the Roman town, near
the water, is a reconstruction of a barn from the (no longer
existing) town of Dorestad. Along the banks were houses
of merchants. Barns like this were built on the high bank of
the river, a place for ships to load and unload their goods.
The barns were used for storage.
The Early Middle Ages: Dorestad
Dorestad was built near a Roman border fort on the River
Rhine. The fort fell into the hands of the Frankish vassal
kings. All along the banks of the river north of the fort
tradesmen and craftsmen settled. A little further inland
were farmhouses. At its height Dorestad stretched over
a distance of about three kilometres along the banks of
the rivers Rhine and Lek. The town probably had between
2000 and 3000 inhabitants. From approx. AD 600 to 800
Dorestad was one of the most important and largest trading posts in north-western Europe.
The flourishing period of Dorestad began to decline in the
9th century. Rivers became difficult to navigate. Other trading towns took over and became more attractive to traders. Besides, there were political developments, causing unrest. Perhaps the most important reason for the decline of
Dorestad were the Viking raids from about AD 830. Several
times the town was set on fire. In reduced form the little
town managed to drag out its existence until AD 1000. In
the end Dorestad, as a trading town, was no longer of any
importance.
Workshop and dug-in huts
Near the barn from Dorestad, a number of new reconstructions will be realized in the near future. The first one
will be a covered workshop from the period of 700 - 850
AD.
Followed by a hut which will be partly dug into the ground.
These dug-in huts, which are excavated all over the Netherlands, were used as outbuildings of farmhouses. They may
have been used as workshops. The site of the hut realized
here, showed traces of iron working and glass production.
The hut dates from the period between 600 and 700 AD.
31
The Late Middle Ages
Life in the medieval part of Archeon is set in a town called
Gravendam (the Count’s Dam), in the year 1350. Our little
town gives an impression of a typical small town in the west
of the Netherlands around 1350. Here too, all the houses
are based on archaeological finds or architectural research.
In the 14th century not many people lived in a town. Those
who did were usually craftsmen, tradesmen, labourers and
civil servants. For the development of a town it was important to have the rights to hold a market.
In Gravendam are older and newer houses. Although all
with a 14th century interior, the houses carry the characteristics of the period in which they were built. Gravendam
in the year 1350 has an older and a newer part. The huts in
the old part, the ‘Damstrate’, are the oldest buildings, dating
from the 9th – 11th century. The houses in the new part,
the ‘Herestrate’, date from the 11th –13th century.
The Damstrate (Damstreet)
The older houses of Gravendam are situated around the
dam. The smallest house is the fisherman’s cottage from
the 12th century. Next to it is the beekeeper’s house
from the 11th century (based on excavations in Antwerp).
These two houses give a good idea about the continuity
in house-building from the prehistoric times to the Middle
Ages. They still have many characteristics which can also be
seen in the prehistoric houses in Archeon. The frame of
the houses consists of wooden posts. The walls between
the posts are made of wooden planks or wattle and daub.
These houses do not yet have foundations: posts and walls
have been put straight into the ground. Each house is just
a single-room dwelling with a fireplace on the floor and a
hole in the thatched roof as an outlet for the smoke. A single opening serves as a window, which can be closed with
a shutter. Some of the yards slope down to the open water.
Part of the work of the craftsmen takes place in the yard.
The houses on the left-hand side of the ‘Damstreet’ show
the development of village house to town house. These are
the houses of the shepherd and the turner. They date from
the beginning of the 13th century. They are still quite wide
and have the high roof of a farmhouse. However, they are
much shorter, as part of the house is no longer needed as
stable. Like the houses of the fisherman and the beekeeper,
they are still single-room dwellings, with a fireplace on the
32
floor and a smoke hatch in the roof. But they also have
something new: the start of a loft, covering one third of the
floor space. This loft is used as storage place or for sleeping.
They also have more windows than the dark farmhouses of
the same period. There is no glass yet, windows are closed
with shutters.
27
The Fisherman’s cottage
The fisherman caught his fish in the inland waterways
around the town and sold it in the market or from door to
door.The fish was caught with home-made nets, sometimes
with a wicker fish trap. By smoking the fish became tastier
and better to keep. Because of the many days of fasting
(days on which it was not allowed to eat meat) people ate
a lot of fish. However, fish was mainly the poor man’s food
and the fisherman was certainly not a rich man.
28
House of the beekeeper
The beekeeper’s house (11th century) has a timber front
and back.The walls are made of loam, it has a thatched roof
with hatches in both open ends. Just like in the fisherman’s
cottage, all activities take place in one single room.The family works, cooks, eats and sleeps in the same room. The
beekeeper has some beehives in his garden. He weaves the
hives himself. Honey was used as a sweetener in all kinds of
dishes and drinks. Sugar was still very rare.
Behind the beekeeper’s
house are some beehives. If the weather is nice, the
bees are sure to fly out.
33
The huts
Any piece of rough land
can be used
to pasture goats. Goats are easily satisfied
and were mainly kept by the
poorer people.
That is why the animal was
sometimes called
the poor man’s cow. The milk
was used, for
example, to make cheese.
The various huts date from the 9th, 10th and 11th century.
They were used as workshops, e.g. as weaving hut, smithy
or even bakery. Partly dug into the ground the hut provided
a constant temperature in summer and in winter.
29
Goat shed
The hut is dug 140 cm into the ground. Up to a height of
50 cm the walls consist of sods, covered by a timber frame.
On the roof are planks and sods. It has a mud floor. This hut
is used as a goat shed. It dates from the 9th century.
30
Workshop of the tinsmith
On the basis of excavated pottery the hut is thought to
date from the 11th century. It has been dug 1 meter deep
into the ground. The roof rests on round oak logs which
have been put into the ground. The lower part of the walls
consists of pure loam, so without wattle bracing. The upper
part of the walls and the roof have been made of planks.
This tiny house is the workshop of the tinsmith. The tinsmith of Archeon also works with silver, bronze, gold and
other metals.
W
orkshop of the
31 basket-maker
The original hut had been partly dug, about 30 to 50 cm,
into the side of a sand hill. The hut consists of a timber
frame, filled with wattle and daub. It has a thatched roof
and a cobbled floor. It is the workshop of the wicker-basket
maker.
Pilgrimage badges were
very popular in the
Middle Ages and were usually
moulded in tin. People bought
these pins in the places where
they had been on a pilgrimage.
They were sewn on clothes or
hats. This way people could
show where they had been.
34
31
The Dam
The Dam is the natural centre of Gravendam. It is formed
by the dike, separating the small inland water from the river.
The Dam is the place where important announcements
are made.
33House of the turner
The turner’s house is based on an excavation in Delft. The
house is quite wide, with a high roof. It is a single room
dwelling, with a fireplace on the floor and a smoke hatch in
the roof. This so-called ‘smoke house’ has a small loft, covering one third of the floor space.
but also spoons and spatulas. Bone was used for combs,
awls, rosaries, chessmen and dice. In Archeon, the turner
has two lathes: one for making beads and one for making
bigger wooden articles. For drilling small holes he uses a
so-called Archimedes drill. Decorations are made with a
point circle cutter.
In the turner’s house
you can often try the
medieval brace and bit for
yourself.
From wood and offal (bone, horn and antler) the turner
made both practical things and toys. From wood he made
among other things, handles for axes, rakes and other tools
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34 House of the shepherd
The shepherd’s house is a variation on the turner’s house. It
is much simpler; no high gable and only one window. In the
yard is the sheep fold. Next to his own sheep the shepherd
also looks after the sheep of the other townspeople. In
return he receives part of the wool and the meat, or part
of the proceeds.
the gallows fields were usually on the north-eastern side
of the town.
The stocks are also in the gallows field. In the Middle Ages,
petty thieves were placed in the stocks by the town guard.
The townspeople were allowed to throw all sorts of horrible things at them, like rotten eggs, rotten fruit, mud and
even dung.
36 Archery Field
A medieval town or village should not be without an archery field. To be able to shoot well an archer needed a lot
of practice. In the special archery field this could be done
without being too much of a hazard to the people of the
town or village.
There are regular
shepherding demonstrations by the shepherd and
his dog(s).
At the archery field you
can try to score a bull’s
eye with bow and arrow.
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35
Gallows Field
On the gallows field are the gallows and the wheel. Here,
executed criminals were put on display as a kind of deterrent. The hanging itself was done on a gallows in town.
Once dead, the hanged man was re-hanged outside the
town. This time with a rope underneath his arms.
Another way was to tie the criminal to a wheel, whereupon
his bones would be broken.
Due to the mainly south-westerly wind in the Netherlands,
37 Smithy
This smithy is a combination of 14th century building
principles. Hence, it is not a reconstruction of one single
building, but a combination of several smithies from this
period.
The smithy has been reconstructed with original ‘Roman
bricks’ from an excavation and the wood from an old
farmhouse in France.
The smithy consists of an open and a closed part. The
open part is used as a stable for a team of oxen. The
closed part has a brick hearth with a chimney. Leading
into the hearth are the bellows, hung in a wooden rack.
A hole in the wall over the fire, at working height, allows
the smith to forge large items. The first floor is a storage
place for iron and the charcoal necessary for the fire.
The blacksmith forges tools, iron fittings and nails. The
iron is heated and then forged with hammers. An ordinary blacksmith did not make weapons, he would not
even have been allowed to. Weapons were mainly imported from abroad.
Iron was in the Middle
Ages about as valuable
as silver is now.
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Stables
The townspeople of Gravendam - but also visitors to the
town- can leave their horses in this public stable. Carts can
be stored, horses fed and attended to. The loft of the stable
is used for storing the hay, brought in from the surrounding fields.
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35
The Market
The Market ‘square’ was the business centre of the Medieval town. The market is situated at the harbour, an ideal
place for bringing in and taking out the goods. At medieval
markets people used to sell mainly goods and products for
everyday household use. However, there were also luxury
articles such as spices and jewellery.The products were displayed in permanent stalls at the market square or at temporary booths, specially put up for the market day, like the
ones we know from our present-day weekly markets. Only,
medieval stalls were smaller and did not have any metal
parts. The permanent stalls were used by the town’s craftsmen and merchants. The temporary places were mainly for
the farmers and
farmers’ wives from
the
surrounding
countryside. Some
craftsmen used the
market but most
of them sold their
goods from door
to door.
The ‘Herestrate (the Lord’s Street)
The ‘Herestrate’ is named after the Count of Holland (the
lord). This new part of Gravendam consists of early 14th
century houses. Most houses in this street are based on the
still existing ‘oldest timber house of Edam”. This 15th century house was built on an even older foundation. Nearly
all other houses in this street are variations on this particular house.
The houses are made partly of timber and partly of brick.
The more brick was used, the more expensive the house.
Building with brick enabled people to build a hearth with a
flue against the wall. The simple floor hearth disappeared.
Now that the smoke no longer had to find its way out
through the roof, the lofts could be extended to form a
complete first floor, which could be used for storage. Many
houses have leaded windows.
Behind the houses are back yards. Some of them have
kitchen gardens or animal pens and wells. Out in the yard
is the outside toilet, over the cesspit. The dung is used as
manure and consequently, does not end up in the open
water.
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40House of the Cabinetmaker
The chests made by the cabinetmaker were the most important pieces of furniture in the Middle Ages. Chests were
used to put one’s things away or for sitting on. The cabinetmaker also made tables and chairs and shelves for storing
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pots, pans and crockery. For the wealthier customers the
cabinetmaker decorated the furniture with woodcarving. The tools he used were hand drills, saws, chisels and
gouges.
The finer joinery was done in the house, the heavier sawing work and carpentry was carried out on a saw-bench
in the back yard. A remarkable feature of this house is the
clay floor, the other houses in this street have stone (bricks,
tiles) floors.
41House of the shoemaker
The shoemaker in Archeon works in the front part of the
house. For his shoes the medieval shoemaker used cowskin
and goatskin. Every part of the shoe was sewn by hand, for
which he used a copper needle or a pig’s hair and a flaxen thread. Shoes did not yet have double soles and heels
like today. In bad weather medieval people would wear
wooden ‘under-shoes’, called pattens, to protect their shoes
and keep their feet dry. The shoemaker did not keep stock,
shoes were made to size for each individual customer.
The longer the point
of the shoe, the more
leather was needed.
Leather was expensive and
people wanted to have long
points on their shoes to show the
neighbours how wealthy they
were.
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On Sundays the brothers often sing Gregorian plainsong in the monastery
kitchen.
Enjoy the hours as sung in the
Middle Ages.
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Monastery
The building that we, in Archeon, call the monastery was
originally part of a complex where in the olden days the
clergy lived. It is a reconstruction of a 14th century monastery found in the town of Dordrecht. On the ground floor
are the kitchen and the dining hall (the refectory). The Hall,
on the first floor, and the Refectory are now used as restaurants. Both can be hired for parties or receptions.
In the monastery kitchen, furnished in 14th century style,
you can visit the brothers.
In the Middle Ages, the hall on the first floor would have
been used as dormitory for the guests of the Friars Minor.
These guests were usually pilgrims or poor people who
could not afford to stay at an inn. The entrance of the staircase to the brothers’ dormitory is in the corner on the left
of the hearth.
The monastery housed about 15 brothers. They slept, as
did their guests, on straw mattresses under blankets. They
slept in their habits. At stated times they rose to sing the
nocturnal prayers of the Holy Mass (Matins, Lauds, Prime).
In 1350 the brothers did not yet have cells. An open dormitory allowed a kind of social control. Besides, it made it
easier to summon everyone for Holy Mass, at the same
time. The windows in the dormitory have two different
styles. Both Gothic and Roman shapes can be identified.
The Monastery of the Friars Minor was usually situated
within the town. It had a social and public function. The
brothers provided shelter for poor pilgrims and travellers.
Their spiritual care, teaching and material support was
aimed in particular, at the poor of the town.
The bailiff and aldermen of Dordrecht held their meetings
in the monastery. After the town hall was built in 1285, the
rooms of the monastery were used by various guilds and
groups of citizens. The brothers probably received food
and drink in return for this service.
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Medieval Herb Garden
Next to the monastery is the herb garden. The layout of the garden, in the shape of a cross with a
well in the middle, is typical for the Middle Ages. The
brothers used the herbs in the kitchen or for the
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preparation of medicine.
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By the fineness of
the material and the
depth of the colours, you could
see if someone was rich or poor.
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H
ouse of the Weaver / Falconer
This is where the weaver lives. There is an old oak loom
and a 14th century spinning wheel and also various kinds
of coloured wool and woven material.
Next to the house is a birdhouse for the falconer’s birds.
The falconer is not always at home. He is often at the court
in The Hague. However, if he is in you can enter the birdhouse and take a close look at the birds. For centuries,
falconry has been a popular pastime. In the Middle Ages it
was usually the falcon that was trained to hunt small game,
but hawk, buzzard, sparrow hawk and golden eagle were
also used for hunting. The falcon was a status symbol of the
clergy and nobility. A trained falcon was not cheep and the
more powerful the hunter, the rarer the falcon.
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The surgeon knows a
lot about all kinds of
illnesses and can tell you some
‘blood-curdling’ stories.
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House of the barber-surgeon
The barber-surgeon is an important man in town. He is
both barber, beard trimmer and healer. He bleeds the patients and treats their wounds. He is also a kind of dentist.
In the house are all kinds of herbs and minerals which are
used for making ointments and powders. The town provides him with a house and pays his wages. In return, the
poor are treated free of charge.
In the Middle Ages not many people could read and write.
Therefore, craftsmen often used a sign to show their trade
to the passers-by. The pole with the winding red stripe
(colour of blood) was the sign of the barber-surgeon.
Very often, the felt
maker is at work at
the pottery merchant’s house.
She can show you how to make
small items of felt.
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46
House of the baker
The front part of the house is used as bakery. Here, the
baker kneads the dough for the bread in a wooden trough.
When it is ready to be baked, he carries it on planks
through the house to the back yard where the oven is. The
oven, which is fired with faggots, takes about 2 or 3 hours
to reach the right temperature. When the bread is in the
oven, bits of dough are spread onto the slits of the small
iron oven door. The baking of the bread takes about 45
minutes, after which the bread is put out to cool down.
When the bread is ready the baker blows his horn. This is
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the sign for the townspeople to come and buy their fresh
bread. As the oven will stay hot for a long time after the
baker has finished with it, the housewives bring in their
home-made pies, pasties and cakes to be baked, for a small
fee, in the baker’s oven.
The baker and his family live in the rear part of the house.
Here we see the first step in the change from traditional floor hearth to the modern built-in fireplace: a round
hearth with semi-circular brick mantelpiece.The loft is used
for storing flour and other ingredients.
House of the pottery
merchant
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This large house belongs to the richest man in this town,
the pottery merchant. The front is still made of wood, but
on both sides and at the back the house has brick walls. It
has an overhanging first floor and loft. The high entrance
hall with its large leaded window wall on the first floor
is a sign of the wealth of the owner. A high hall like this,
which served as a shop, was specially developed to make
the goods on the tables and shelves show up well.
The windows have small panes of glass and the roof is covered with early tiles, the forerunners of our roof tiles.
Other signs of luxury are the three fireplaces with chimneys, which means that the merchant’s house has as many
as three heated rooms. All the other houses in Gravendam
have but one heated room in which people work, cook
and sleep.
Round the fireplace at the back of the house, a separate
room has been built, which is used as a kitchen. This is were
the family lives. Over the low ceiling of the kitchen is a
separate bedroom with a fireplace.
Unlike all the other people in this town, the pottery merchant does not have to go outside to go to the toilet. Both
upstairs in the bedroom and downstairs in the kitchen are
toilets. The toilet does not have a door or any other kind of
partition, medieval people did not feel embarrassed about
that at all.
In Archeon this is the house of the pottery merchant, a
wealthy tradesman who imports and sells stoneware. The
merchant buys this stoneware in the German Rhine area
and sells it at home at a nice profit. This makes the pottery
merchant’s house the most luxurious and most modern
house in this town.
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Your unforgettable party, meeting or event in Theme Park Archeon
Are you looking for a special
location in a rustic atmosphere?
Come and see us at Archeon. We
can offer you many possibilities,
from exquisite dinner parties to
fantastic disco parties for groups
of 50 to 840 people.
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Events
Parties
W
eddings, receptions and
dinner parties
Group accommodation
Meetings
Training sessions, exhibitions
Archeon, centrally situated in the
Green Heart of Holland, only 30
minutes’ drive from Amsterdam,
Utrecht, Rotterdam and The
Hague.
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Various theme days in Archeon, all through the season
All through the season many Living History groups from all over
Europe will present themselves
on historical theme days.
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Vikings
Romans
13th century
15th century
Napoleon
Western days
Crafts days
Rituals and customs
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