While Celts were well
known for their skills in metalworking, clothing, and music, they also had beautiful
unique ways for housing. The Celtic people were mainly farmers in their
villages while others were traders that “built fortified towns along their routes”
(Bennett, 31). In these villages the Celtic people showed their intricate culture
with their interesting style of dwellings called roundhouses. These roundhouses
were distinctive with their circular bases and cone-like roofing allowing for
easy accommodation of “a large number of occupants” (Stair na hEireann). Roundhouses
were unique in that they were entirely built out of raw materials consisting of
wood, hay, and in some cases mud. Later, in Celtic civilization they transitioned
to using stone with thatched roofs and wattle walls. The homes’ entrance and
exit were extended out from the structure and there were no windows, but there
was a single opening at the top of the roofs to allow for smoke from fires to
rise and release easily. The main living space of the dwelling was the central
single room that provided “various uses, including sleeping, cooking,
craftwork, and storage” (Stair na hEireann).
Roundhouses were generally found on a structure of land known
as a hill fort. Hill forts were large mounds of earth that could hold an entire
village at its top; many of these large structures can still be found in the
fields of England. Though archaeologists have found significant evidence of
these roundhouses there are no complete fortifications of them due to the
decomposition of the original houses through time. As a way to preserve history
there are many replicas of these intricate houses throughout Celtic areas.
References
Bennett, Judith. Medieval Europe: A Short History. New York: McGraw-Hill, 2011.
Stair na hEireann. "Celtic Roundhouses." History of Ireland, 2016
https://stairnaheireann.net/2016/12/07/celtic-roundhouses/
"Celtic Round Houses." Resources for History
https://resourcesforhistory.com/Celtic_round_houses.htm#gsc.tab=0
I think this was a well wrote blog. I enjoyed reading about Irish round houses.
ReplyDeleteThese dwellings look very similar to the Wattle and Daub or the Mound Grass Houses that were traditionally used by the Chickasaw tribe. Speaking of which, if you ever find yourself near Sulphur, Oklahoma, it would be worth your time to visit the Chickasaw Cultural Center.
ReplyDeleteThis is really interesting, and I love that there are modern replicas! I think the fact that these roundhouses were originally made out of wood, hay, and mud is intriguing. Maybe the transition from these materials to more stable ones like stone provides evidence for the Celts switching to a less nomadic lifestyle?
ReplyDeleteThis was very interesting because we can see this style of housing all throughout history. In some ways it shows different peoples can still think very much alike, even with being so far away from each other. I also found it interesting that they did not have windows, do you know why?
ReplyDeleteWhat caught my eye is that these houses look very similar to the houses in the movie Moana. It is interesting to see how a completely different culture in history can affect popular culture. Great post!
ReplyDeleteI found it interesting because it reminds me of some typical houses back home, in Italy called "Trulli". https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Trullo
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