ANGLO-SAXON DISCOVERY
Journey through Anglo-Saxon life and death

What were Anglo-Saxon houses like?

• What were Anglo-Saxon houses made of?
• What did Anglo-Saxon houses look like?
• What was inside the houses?

The walls of Anglo-Saxon houses were made of wood and sometimes wattle-and-daub.

Wattle-and-daub is made by weaving together small wooden branches to create a wall. Mud, straw, horse hair and cow or horse dung is mixed together and then smeared on the walls. Once this dries it is like plaster and can even be painted.

Roofs were thatched with straw or reeds. The floors were either wooden planks or just plain earth.

What did Anglo-Saxon houses look like?

There were at least two types of Anglo-Saxon houses:

1. Halls

These were rectangular buildings. Sometimes with posts inside to hold up the roof.

2. Sunken Buildings

These were small rectangular buildings with the floor dug into the ground. They usually had a couple of wooden posts supporting the roof.

Some of these buildings may have had a wooden floor and the space below was like a basement and used for storage.

What was inside the houses?

Anglo-Saxon houses would have had a hearth for the fire for cooking and warmth. There were no chimneys so the smoke went out through the roof and houses tended to be very smokey.

Furniture would have been made of wood. They would have had beds with straw or feather mattresses. Benches and tables for eating and sitting. Chests were used to store bedding, tools and vaulable items. They probably hung their clothes and other things from pegs on the walls.