Prehistoric smallholdings

Work by archaeologists such as Francis Pryor and Jeremy Taylor has helped us to understand a great deal about prehistoric roundhouses. The size of roundhouses varies considerably, from just a couple of metres to over 15 metres (50 feet) across.

Dating from the Bronze Age onwards, they are often found in groups of three or four, possibly representing small extended family farmsteads – and in the Iron Age in larger community groups.

Some evidence for internal divisions in houses and the grouping of houses in settlements indicate multi-group occupation and this should be considered when trying to reconstruct a model for society at the time. The fact that Iron-Age settlements often include more boundary lines, and sometimes earthworks, could indicate that there was an increased emphasis on property ownership and definition between groups in this later age.

See: The hole truth about roundhouses