the history of the barn

In addition to an ancient water-meadow (hence the sheer number of springs, streams, rivers and pools), the land that the Barn sits upon has attracted much attention from metal detector enthusiasts during its recent history due to the discovery of a number of Bronze Age spear heads, axes, and arm rings. The belief is that it was the site of a Bronze Age settlement as bronze smeltings has been found. Another theory is that the land, being rather boggy, was the site of votive offerings, where people would make rich offerings to the gods. Indeed the site is in full view of one of the largest burial mounds in the country.

Despite its rich history, the building left standing would have been used to house a carthorse, cattle and hay. The small holes in the wall (with wooden mice in) were candle holders, and the slats in the upper walls were to let the hay breathe - a procedure to counteract the heat produced when the freshly made fodder heats up (sometimes hot enough to start fires!).

The hay rack on the stairwell is just that, used to feed cattle which would have been kept in the now sitting room. The cart would have been stored in the kitchen, hence the large cart doors, and the large door to the right of the cart doors would have housed the huge horses used on the farm.

The stone steps at the side of the barn were necessary as there would have been no stairs inside.