Landscape IRON AGE Background Ingoldmells is one of several salt At the end of the Bronze Age the making sites found along the east climate deteriorated, becoming coast of Britain. In the Iron Age it was colder and wetter. Sea levels rose and an area of flat, coastal salt marsh with coastal areas were swamped in salty navigable inlets. water, destroying grazing land. During the Iron Age a North/South split developed. The River Trent provided What’s happening? Salt production an easily navigable route for trade in Trays of damp salt are being stacked and out of the region and settlements into kilns, nearby other kilns are being along its course grew and thrived. fired or unpacked. A child is making North of the Trent was poorer and small thumb pots, maybe to hold small more wooded, settlements here seem quantities of salt or just in play to consist of two or three small In the background a laden pony is roundhouses grouped inside a ditched ready to transport the salt across the enclosure, a pattern more common in region and traders are arriving by northern Britain. boat. Generally the landscape is Salt making recognisably rural with fields and Salt has been produced for millennia pasture surrounding villages of round along the eastern coast. houses made from wattle and daub. Lowland enclosures similar to upland Saltwater is channelled from the sea hillforts appear. These don’t seem to into shallow pans. be defensive and there is little As the water evaporates, salt archaeological evidence for warfare. crystals form on the surface. Pottery making continues but is The salt crystals are scooped off and generally functional rather than packed into clay troughs. decorative. Towards the end of the Smaller quantities of salt are packed period wheel thrown pottery was into pots, including tiny thumb pots, being made. probably made by children. The troughs and pots are packed Iron has replaced bronze as the into peat fired kilns and left to dry. metal of choice. The raw materials to The dried salt ‘cakes’ and pots of make it are readily available which salt are transported throughout the makes it cheaper to produce. region by coracle and packhorse THE POSTER along a network of rivers and Salt production, Ingoldmels, trackway Lincolnshire coast.
IRON AGE Background At the end of the Bronze Age the climate deteriorated, becoming colder and wetter. Sea levels rose and coastal areas were swamped in salty water, destroying grazing land. During the Iron Age a North/South split developed. The River Trent provided an easily navigable route for trade in and out of the region and settlements along its course grew and thrived. North of the Trent was poorer and more wooded, settlements here seem to consist of two or three small roundhouses grouped inside a ditched enclosure, a pattern more common in northern Britain. Generally the landscape is recognisably rural with fields and pasture surrounding villages of round houses made from wattle and daub. Lowland enclosures similar to upland hillforts appear. These don’t seem to be defensive and there is little archaeological evidence for warfare. Pottery making continues but is generally functional rather than decorative. Towards the end of the period wheel thrown pottery was being made. Iron has replaced bronze as the metal of choice. The raw materials to make it are readily available which makes it cheaper to produce. THE POSTER Salt production, Ingoldmels, Lincolnshire coast. Landscape Ingoldmells is one of several salt making sites found along the east coast of Britain. In the Iron Age it was an area of flat, coastal salt marsh with navigable inlets. What’s happening? Salt production Trays of damp salt are being stacked into kilns, nearby other kilns are being fired or unpacked. A child is making small thumb pots, maybe to hold small quantities of salt or just in play In the background a laden pony is ready to transport the salt across the region and traders are arriving by boat. Salt making Salt has been produced for millennia along the eastern coast. Saltwater is channelled from the sea into shallow pans. As the water evaporates, salt crystals form on the surface. The salt crystals are scooped off and packed into clay troughs. Smaller quantities of salt are packed into pots, including tiny thumb pots, probably made by children. The troughs and pots are packed into peat fired kilns and left to dry. The dried salt ‘cakes’ and pots of salt are transported throughout the region by coracle and packhorse along a network of rivers and trackway