Ryedale Folk Museum in Hutton-le-Hole is Yorkshire’s leading open-air museum since 1964. It is spread over five acres and digs deep into the history of Ryedale and the North Yorkshire Moors as far back as the Iron Age. In 2008, an Iron Age type roundhouse was constructed on site.
This was planned, following careful research on prehistoric sites at West Heslerton and Pickering. Building the roundhouse was a real community project including local schools and various volunteers. As much as feasible, original local materials and ‘Iron Age’ techniques were used in construction and furnishing the house. The house itself is completely fitted out.
The site also has its own livestock with among others sheep, pigs, chickens a horse and wild animals and insects encouraged by a variety of habitat boxes.
Although primarily used by tourist visitors, local teachers too, use this educational resource centre to teach their pupils by means of ‘hands on’ how life could have been like in the past. On several occasions, Iron Age re-enactors demonstrating different crafts from the period, (wood-turning, pottery, weaving and textiles) are present.
Picture by Chris Allen
