Buildings and Farmsteads

Life on oppida was centered around “farmsteads” – estates that included residential buildings, workshops, storage facilities, and farming facilities. The life of the elite in our oppidum is represented by the chieftain’s and blacksmith’s farmsteads, the middle class by the potter’s farmstead, and the poorer class by the woodcarver’s homestead. Farmsteads were fenced and houses lockable, indicating that the Celts valued personal property and privacy. Houses are built of wood (post structures and log cabins), wicker, and clay daub. Roofs most commonly use straw or reed thatch, but can also be made of split wooden boards (shingles) or sod.