The Queenslander (Brisbane, Qld. : 1866 - 1939)(about) |
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Saturday 16 July 1921
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1 correction by yelnod - Show corrections
HOUSES 7000 YEARS OLD.
The three months' drought on the Swiss glaciers has caused the water of the lakes to sink so low that pre- historic lake dwellings are visible at
several places. At Greng, near the Lake of Morat, the remains of a large settlement can be seen, while by Lake Neuchatel and near Morges, on the Lake of Geneva, other interesting relics are clearly visible. These Swiss lake dwellings, which were revealed to the world in 1854 by a drought similar to the present one, are believed to have been built as long as 7000 years ago. From about 5000 B.C. people lived in them down almost to historic times. The structure which sup- ported the wooden platforms on which the dwellings were built was made of piles driven into the bottom of the lake. The platforms were fastened by wooden pins, and the huts made of wood and clay, with hearths of flat slabs of stone. Bark, straw, reeds, or rushes formed the thatched roof. The huts, which were partitioned into rooms, varied in size from 20ft. long by 12ft. wide to 27ft. long by 22ft. wide. The Morges village, one of the largest in the Lake of Geneva, was 1200 ft. long and 150 ft. wide. Numerous relics
have been found in the peaty accumula- tions below the villages, showing that the inhabitants used stone, bronze, bone, wood, and occasionally iron for their cooking and hunting implements. Burnt wheat, barley, fruits, and bones of oxen, swine, sheep, dogs, horse, hare, bear, bison, and other animals were also found. Similar lake dwellings have been ex- cavated at Glastonbury, in Somerset.