Creating a home. Ritual practice related to houses in a terp settlement in the northern Netherlands
Channel: Recording Archaeology
Date: 2017-01-24

Between 1923 and 1934, excavations were carried out in the terp settlement of Ezinge by one of the founding fathers of Dutch archaeology, A.E. van Giffen. Ezinge is located in the coastal area of the northern Netherlands, a former salt marsh area. It is one of many terps that are found in this region: artificial dwelling mounds, which once protected their residents against floods. A terp started with one or several houses built on separate platforms, which clustered as they were heightened, developing into single larger mounds. The terp of Ezinge ultimately reached a height of 5.5 m and covered 16 ha, about 10% of which was archaeologically excavated in 22 levels.
Ezinge became famous because of the well-preserved remains of 85 longhouses, dating from the 5th century BC until the early middle ages. The lower parts of wooden buildings often were still preserved in situ, revealing the structure of these 3-aisled, two-partite houses with built-in byres.
Excellent preservation, also of pottery and bone, enabled not only a thorough investigation of the material culture, but also of ritual practice in this settlement. This investigation was carried out only recently, between 2011 and 2015. This paper will present some of the results of the study of ritual practice. It will discuss the ways in which rituals were related to various stages of the lifecycle of a house: raising the house platform, building the house, living in it and finally abandoning the house. A conspicuous element of ritual practice was the burial of human remains in and near houses. It will be argued that burying the remains of deceased family members created ancestral grounds and also made people feel at home. Single inhumations and single bones (probably the remainders of the dead which were collected after a process of excarnation) were both used that way.
Ritual practice associated with houses changed over time. It was influenced by internal developments, especially population growth, which caused changes in the layout of the settlement and competition for the available space on the terp.

Author - Dr. Nieuwhof, Annet, University of Groningen, De Punt, Netherlands (Presenting author)