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| The Berth |
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|Description ||This is our representation of how the Berth Pool view might have looked nearly two and a half thousand years ago.
Approaching the Berth from here would have meant a boat trip as this was where the mere was at its deepest. It’s another quarter of a mile to the causeway to our right. We’ve no idea if this was a form of transport they used to get to the Main Camp at any time, but if it was it might have been a little quicker than the land route. The late Lily Chitty – a famous Shropshire archaeologist - did mention evidence of a boat mooring, sited just across from this view in her writings, but she didn't mention from what period it might have been. The above image is a boatman's eye view from a log boat, half way between the mainland and the Berth... where he would berth... maybe on his way to a birth.
There have been a great many log boats discovered in Britain: over 150 to date. By the very nature of where they were used, especially around marshes, they've been in the perfect conditions to be preserved. They used to be called dug out boats, but archaeologists didn't seem to like this slightly condescending term, so they chose 'log boat' instead. As both names imply, they were made from a single oak log. This may seem straightforward but, as many a person has discovered in trying to recreate them, there's a lot of skill involved.
The condition and placement in which a few have been discovered has lead some archaeologists to the conclusion that they weren't always used for transport, but may have been used as a votive offering or as a kind of 'gift' to the constructing of something like a causeway. The condition of these boats shows they hadn't been used or that they were very well looked after.
Sounds a bit fishy...
There's not a lot of archaeological evidence anywhere in Britain to suggest the Iron Age inhabitants of The Berth did what the Pool anglers of today do and fish for their supper. There haven’t been many fish bones turning up at hillfort digs, but this may be because they don't stand the test of time very well. Where fish bones have been found they’ve been identified mainly as chub. They seemed to like freshwater mussels though and plenty of empty shells have been discovered. The lack of fish in the diet may seem strange but, perhaps, they had a very good reason for not eating them. Maybe sticking a spear into the waters - a sacred element to them - was like sticking a spear into a god?
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