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This summer, visitors to Stonehenge will be able to step back in time – or, rather, step inside the largest-ever reconstruction of a prehistoric building. The Kusuma Neolithic Hall is based on a 4,500-year-old structure that is thought to have once stood 3.2km (2 miles) from the famous monument, at Durrington Walls.
In 1928, Maud Cunnington (also renowned for her work at nearby Woodhenge) excavated a series of postholes that are today known as Durrington 68. Although Cunnington initially interpreted her find as an early Iron Age enclosure, we now know that these features (which were re-examined by the Stonehenge Riverside Project in 2007) date to the late Neolithic period. They are thought to represent a large four-post or ‘square-in-circle’ structure, with a horseshoe of postholes surrounding four pits that would have held tall timbers supporting the building’s roof. As its floor surfaces have been removed by ploughing, Durrington 68’s intended purpose is not known, but pottery and animal bones from the wider site speak of winter feasts being held at Durrington Walls during this period (see CA 334), and it is possible that an imposing building like this could have played a part in such gatherings, perhaps as a meeting or storage space.
The Kusuma Neolithic Hall is based on a 4,500-year-old structure thought to have once stood a few kilometres from Stonehenge.
Its ghostly outline has now been transformed into a 3D interpretation of how the hall may have originally looked, rising 7m (23ft) above Salisbury Plain outside the Stonehenge Visitor Centre. The finished structure represents more than nine months of work by a team of over 100 English Heritage volunteers, guided by expert experimental archaeologist Luke Winter, as part of a £1 million project funded by the Kusuma Trust. It was created using historically accurate replica flint axes, traditional construction methods based on surviving archaeological evidence for prehistoric carpentry techniques, and locally sourced materials including coppiced hazel, thatch, and chalk daub.
The reconstruction forms only the first phase of a large-scale project by English Heritage to extend its capacity for learning visits and cross-curricular opportunities at Stonehenge. The hall will be open to the public all summer, and from September it will become a dedicated learning space for school visits as part of the site’s new STEM in Heritage programme. Its interior is designed to accommodate groups of up to 30 children, who will be able to gather around the hearth, handle replica artefacts, experience prehistoric cooking and crafts, and learn about everyday life 4,500 years ago.
• For more information about visiting Stonehenge, see http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/stonehenge.
• For more about English Heritage’s learning programme at the site, see http://www.english-heritage.org.uk/visit/places/stonehenge/school-visits/schools—inspiring-the-future.
• You can also explore a 3D digital model of the hall at: https://sketchfab.com/3d-models/kusuma-neolithic-hall-at-stonehenge-62b8199cc4774328b6188dba6c8c280c.
Image: English Heritage
