Group Members

Section 1
Samuel Assefa Workneh UGR/22742/13
Sabkeber Negash Robale UGR/22816/13
Robel Wendwesen Gizaw UGR/23004/13
Robel fenkesaKekeba UGR/23077/13
The Iron age

The Iron Age began around 1200 B.C. in the Mediterranean region and Near East
with the collapse of several prominent Bronze Age civilizations, including
the Mycenaean civilization in Greece and the Hittite Empire in Turkey.
The iron age was the final era in the three divisions of the prehistoric period.
It was preceded by the Stone Age (Paleolithic, Mesolithic and Neolithic) and the Bronze
Age. The concept has been mostly applied to Europe and the Ancient Near East, but also,
by analogy, to other parts of the Old World.
The duration of the Iron Age varies depending on the region under consideration.
The "Iron Age" begins locally when the production of iron or steel has advanced to the point
where iron tools and weapons replace their bronze equivalents in common use.
The gradual shift to iron tools and weapons occurred when people melted iron and carbon to
make steel.
 Steel is a harder metal and this was discovered by the Hittites in Turkey who belonged
to the Bronze age.
The Hittites invented the process of cementation in which the iron was heated and hammered
with charcoal to make it stronger and more durable.
Therefore, this caused an increase in the use of iron and the rise of the Iron age.
Way of Life in the iron age
The Iron Age people used to live in a certain location meaning sedentary life was practiced.
And developed some very useful tools to help them in their daily work.
During this period many people lived in hill forts.
People were rulrd by warrior kings
The forts were surrounded by walls and ditches and warriors defended their people from enemy.
Iron Age farmers grew crops and vegetables.
 They kept geese, goats and pigs and had large herds of cows and flocks of sheep.
 Some people worked as potters, carpenters and metalworkers.
 Men and boys trained as warriors. They had to be prepared to fight at any time.
 People in Iron Age Britain believed in powerful spirits.
 They met to worship the spirits in sacred places, like the shores of a lake or a clearing in a wood.

Tools Used During the Iron Age

Rotary quern

The rotary quern was used to grind grain into flour.

It was made from two flat stones, one on top of the other.

Iron-making tools

Iron Age blacksmiths made strong swords by heating a bar of iron

over a charcoal fire.

Potter's wheel
British people started using potter's wheels at the end of the Iron Age.

Iron-tipped plough
Iron Age ploughs are sometimes known as 'ards'. They were made
from wood, but they had an iron tip on the end of the plough
to help it cut through heavy soil.
Loom
Weavers hung long threads from a tall loom made from wood.

Pole lathe
Wood-turners used a pole lathe to shape pieces of wood
into dishes, bowls or plates

Architecture In the Iron Age

Iron Age Architecture emerged as the social and cultural environment moved on from small
Neolithic groups of people of the Stone Age to much larger tribes .

Iron Age Architecture was focussed around the construction of Hillforts. The architecture of Iron
Age Hillforts centred around a series of detached buildings (homesteads, or farmhouses, granaries
and communal gathering areas). They were surrounded by at least one concentric bank and ditch.
Iron age architecture featured gateways, barbicans, guardhouses, towers, ramparts, palisades, and
parapets.
Iron Age Hillforts mark the transition to an organised community of people with leaders or Kings.
Tribal disputes and warfare escalated as did the use of more sophisticated and lethal weapons made
first of Bronze and then of Iron.

The Hillforts were developed due to more sophisticated weapons made of first bronze and then of
lead. The pattern of forts and castle development and changing architecture continued up to the
English Medieval Castles

Hillforts were constructed using stone, soil and wood - Timber was favoured as it was clearly
lighter to transport up the hilltops and was used for strengthening the ramparts and for interior
building construction

The materials were transported because the wheel had been invented! Carts and wagons were
available.
Iron Age Architecture moved away from building the massive sacred Stone Monoliths such as
Stonehenge and the idea of the Causewayed Camps were developed still further with the advent of
the Hillforts.

The design of Iron Age architecture had to be a combination of practical use and the aesthetic design!
Iron and Bronze Age architecture had to take the following into consideration:

The design and architecture of the Causewayed Camps want to convey Fear, Awe, Domination,
Envy, Submission, Respect, Power, Wealth - exactly the same requirements as for castles!

There were many skills and workforce required - building, metal production, stone cutting,
transportation, organising resources etc. To build the hillforts would have taken a labour force of
hundreds, and in the instance of Maiden Castle thousands - mostly slaves!
Iron Age Celtic roundhouse
Iron Age Celts lived in houses - but they were very different to the houses we live in today! Large
families lived in a roundhouse. The walls were made of daub (straw, stone, mud and woodl) and
the roof of straw.

The Celts would light a fire in the middle of the roundhouse for cooking and heating.

Iron Age people would have chosen where they lived for different reasons. Farmers lived on the
land they farmed. Sometimes farms would be built in spots with a good source of water, or fertile
ground of good pasture for the animals. The Celts grew corn and kept cows, pigs, horses, goats and
sheep

The chieftain and his family, soldiers and craftsmen, lived in a hillfort because they were easy to
defend.

These are the Drawings For the RoundHouses

Floor Plan
Elevation
Section
Isometric
Roof Plan
 References

From Celtic Village to Iron Age Farmstead https://exarc.net/

BBC - History - Ancient History in depth: Life in an Iron Age Village https://www.bbc.co.uk/

Roundhouse (dwelling) - Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/

The Cambridge World History https://www.cambridge.org/

Iron Age - The Early days of Construction -BuildersMART https://www.buildersmart.in/

Iron Age: Agriculture, Farming Tools & Food https://study.com/