Re: Re: Long houses

From: Henrix <henrix_at_...>
Date: Wed, 28 Feb 2001 12:11:31 +0100


Ah, this got a bit longer than intended. Now you are warned!

(Still without having seen what is described in TR. Of the local game stores, one has lacks money, and the other interest, evidently. Though both normally carry HW material.)

At 15:29 2001-02-27, KYER, JEFFREY wrote:
>I'd wonder if the typical sartarite house was thatch or sod -- I'm not
>sure where one levaves off and the other begins, though the Icelandic
>types never really seemed to use thatch. What was done in the steads of
>Norway? Does anyone know?

Iceland never did have much thatch, nor forest, for that matter, but wood is easier to transport. And it takes less wood than thatch to build a long house.

Scandinavian longhouses have been built with both thatched and sod roofs, depending on local availability. The thatching seems to have been rushes or reeds in preference to straw, and often covered with a (rather thin) layer of sod.
Other than thatch, peat was much preferred over sod as roofing, as it weighs much less. It is not available everywhere, of course. A peat or sod roof has a much less steep angle than a thatched roof to avoid it sliding off, but this is also very dependent on the humidity in the area and at the time. And of course, in an area and time where there is much snow, you want a steeper angle, to lessen the weight of the snow. A house can easily be crushed under the weight of the snow a bad year.

Smokeholes were always placed, not in the middle of the roof, but at the short ends of the house, vertically, so the smoke travels up to the roof from the hearth and follows it to the short ends where it goes out. This makes better use of the hot air than just letting it out through a hole in the middle, not to mention that it stops it from raining (or snowing) straight in.
These holes could generally be closed, often just one at a time to stop cross draught, or both if it is really cold (but you would want to do that, and often did not have to, as it is warmer inside the air pressure is higher so very little cold air enters).
Above the hearth it is a good idea to have a moist skin hanging to catch embers rising with the smoke. A thatched house can easily go up in flames in three or four minutes.

Doors have been placed both in the middle of the long sides or at the short ends, dependant on local custom and placement of the house. If it is built in a windy spot it is wise not to have a door at each short end, because of the draught that would cause.

Not all houses have included a byre, particularily not if it belongs to a stead where there are several houses. (Unless in a very cold time or location, when you want the animals inside for the warmth they bring, such as in the 8th c.)

The above generalizations are true for most scandinavian long houses from the neolithic up to the 13th century. Variations have been very much a matter of custom, but mostly of in what local climate the house was built. All variations have been present throughout the period, but some have been more common at times than others.
I tend to speak more about swedish and danish long houses than about norwegian, but as far as I know, the differences are minimal.

Jeff Kyer:
>I think that turfs were more appropos due to the climate. As stonework
>-- thick stone walls are cool in summer and can at least be
>not-quite-as-cold-as-all-that in winter.

Stone walls are cold in the winter. And takes an awful lot of work if you have to cut the stones first. Which is what you have to do in most of scandinavia. If slate is available in quantities it makes for good walls, preferably sealed with sod.

> I suspect that the timber might require more skill to lay and join
> rather than simple drystone
>walls. Always remember that a frame or cottage made of wood actually
>takes a fair amount of skill to build.

But skills that are ample in most wooded areas.

Wattle and daub walls are very good, and quite easy to build, if the house is not in an overly exposed location. You have to have quantities of clay, though, so it is mostly found in low-lying areas.

Bryan (Bethexton_at_...):
>Sod or thatch both degrade over time. Sod dries up and gets crumbly,
>thatch gets soggy and even begins to decay.

Yes, I was almost forgetting that. Thatch has to be replaced, oh, something like every twentieth year, or so. Peat lasts a bit longer, but I do not know about pure sod roofs. All "living" house material, thatch, wood, wattle, etc, has to be renewed from time to time. Generally you would abandon a house and build an entirely new one, perhaps burning the old, every generation or two.

--
Henrix

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