THE IRON AGE VILLAGE IN VINGSTED
Travel back in time to the Iron Age.
The Iron Age village is always open for walks and experiences on your own.
The houses in the Iron Age village are open when there are events and other activities. Take good care of all animals and houses when visiting the village 💚
Another World
Life around the year 0 and the subsequent centuries was a life in harmony with nature. People were subject to the changing seasons and the moods of the gods. Throughout the day, they worked to survive.
Animals and fields needed tending, and in the surrounding nature, berries and herbs were to be gathered. The blacksmith, potter, weaver, and other craftsmen made and repaired clothing and tools. Most of it for use in the village, but also to barter or sell when a merchant from distant lands passed by.
The Iron Age Village in Vingsted consists of a series of houses and other structures from various Iron Age villages in Jutland and is beautifully located between grasslands, cultivated fields, a lake, and a forest.
The Iron Age Village in Vingsted is Denmark's largest reconstructed Iron Age environment, where houses, fields, a smithy, a sacrificial site, and livestock make up a complete Iron Age settlement. Here, you can participate in activities based on the life of the Iron Age people.
The animals
The Iron Age people had sheep, goats, cattle, pigs and horses. Most animals were for breeding, working and producing dairy before they were eventually eaten.
Most people were farmers. They had many different animals, so they were self-sufficient in everything like meat, hides and wool. Livestock were important for survival and therefore well looked after.
The chief and the craftsmen
Each family lived on a fenced-in farm. Around all the farms there was a common fence. From the size of the farms in the Iron Age village it is evident that some were richer than others.
In Hoddehuset, the village potter lives with her husband, who is a blacksmith. The smithy is located behind the house, which has living quarters in the west and a barn in the east. The potter’s workshop is the small house in front of the farm.
Steppinggården is the village’s largest farm. The chieftain lives here with his wife. In the adjoining buildings we find the stable and the weaving workshop with the völva’s belongings.
Unlike the other houses in the village, Steppinggården does not have stable and habitation in the same house.
No food, no life
Overbygård is home to the village farmer. The farmer takes care of all the animals and makes sure there are grain and vegetables in the fields.
On the Iron Age farmer’s fields grew grain such as barley, wheat and oats, and there were other edible plants such as peas, beans, sea kale, goosefoot, beets and angelica.
Nature was also a large pantry where parsnip, celery, horseradish and carrot grew wild along with blackberries, raspberries, red- and blackcurrants, apples, sea buckthorn, ground elder, nettle and hazelnuts and more.
Mysterious bog
The sacred bog exudes mysticism. This was where the Iron Age people encountered the higher powers that determined daily life. Here they sacrificed in order to remain in good standing with the gods.
Cult and religion were essential to the everyday life of the Iron Age people to secure the crops and the welfare of the animals.
However, the bog was also used for other things such as softening of wood when making wagon wheels or digging for peat. In bogs archaeologists have found traces of sacrifices such as pots with food, gold jewellery, white stones, animals, weapons and even humans.
Please note that info about the events below is in danish.