Professor Ofer Bar Yosef and Dr Gökhan Mustafaoğlu discuss how to reconstruct the roof over the Boncuklu visitor centre’s new replica Neolithic building.
In a matter of a few days the walls rose from nothing to around 1.8m high, built by Abdullah-Usta and his team of builders. The first building is a true experiment in archaeological reconstruction, using the little evidence we have to create as authentic a house as possible. The mudbricks in this building are small by modern standards and are held together in an oval shape by thick layers of mortar. After drying in the sun – which helps to strengthen the bond between the bricks and mortar, we plan to cover the walls in a thick layer of plaster, which will finish the surfaces and add extra strength to the walls. Then the roof will be added. “We do not know how the roof was built,” said Prof. Bar Yosef, “and everyone has different opinions. We will experiment and if the building is still standing next summer we know we have been successful.” Building 2 is also now rising next to the centre and has a different design with larger mudbricks. It will be open for visitors from late autumn 2014 and, as Dr Mustafaoğlu says, “The buildings will greatly enhance the ability of visitors to understand the site and how people lived here 10,000 years ago”.
The gallery below shows the construction process so far, from initial pit digging, to discussion and wall construction as well as the foundations for building 2! The images are large so it may take a while to open on slow connections:
The Boncuklu buildings are one of several Neolithic replica projects in central Turkey, with buildings also at nearby Çatalhöyük and at Aşıklı Höyük in Aksaray (see: http://www.asiklihoyuk.org/). At Aşıklı Güneş Duru, Mihriban Ozbaşaran and team have created a wonderful village of oval and rectangular houses charting the history of the earliest Neolithic settlement and mudbrick construction which is well worth a visit, being close to the tourist hub of Ilhara in Cappadocia. They also provided lots of advice to help build the Boncuklu buildings and we hope ours are as successful as theirs!
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at 11:56 pm
Wow that was quick! And looking fantastic. You are also lucky to have good looking directors at Boncuklu. Was wondering if the exterior walls could have been protected by earth or reed bunches from the raking rain and weather? Wishing I was there still.