Ancient fragments of textiles have been found in the Bronze and Iron Age salt mines of Hallstatt, Austria, dating back from 400 to 1500 BCE. I've always found it extraordinary when such fragile artefacts survive over such long periods of time. In this case, many of the fragments were preserved by the salt itself, which …
Bog Fashion – Recreating Bronze and Iron Age Clothes
I have discovered an amazing book that I’d like to share with everyone. Bog Fashion, by Nicole DeRushie, was published in 2025 and is available through Chrono Copia Publishing. The author is a Canadian historian, and it is clear that this book is a labour of love. It is thoroughly researched with reference to historical …
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Archaeology of Textile Making at Coppergate – 2
Tools of fibre processing and cloth finishing in Anglo-Scandinavian York. Textile making was a common domestic activity throughout the 5th to 10th century in Europe, so it’s not unusual for archaeologists to find a loom weight or a spindle whorl in Early Medieval sites. The Coppergate site in York has been extraordinary, however, for the …
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Archaeology of Textile Making at Coppergate – 1
Tools for spinning and weaving in Anglo Scandinavian York. The archaeological site of Coppergate is an exceptional source of textile working materials over an evolving period of many centuries. This extraordinary site is located within the city of York, in the north of England. Enclosed between two rivers, the Ouse and the Foss, it borders …
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More about bog clothing
As archaeologists uncovered bog bodies in Northern Europe dating to the Bronze Age and Iron Age, there was quite a variety of clothing found on the bodies, often very well preserved. Evidence of woolen garments was widespread, along with animal hides and plant fibres such as linen. The acidic bog environment presents a preservation bias …
My second bog coat
My second bog coat this month has not been made with my own weaving. I travelled to India and the Himalayan region a couple of years ago, and while I was in Gangtok, Sikkim I saw a beautiful Tibetan Yak wool blanket in a market. It was very soft and lightweight, but warm, and my …
Bog Coat
I have been looking forward to making a bog coat for a long time! It feels like the ultimate combination of archaeology and weaving, and in the aim of making a useful piece of clothing. In fact I think I may make another different bog coat next month - I have a couple of blankets …
Early Weave Structures
Weaving is an ancient craft, and an early solution to countless practical needs. In Iraq and Turkey, archaeologists have discovered clay fragments with the impression of woven cloth pressed into them, dating from the Neolithic period as early as 7000 BCE (Barber, 1994). And long before that, humans were intertwining grasses, reeds and branches to …
Always more to learn
I am working on a new weaving gallery for this site which will be much more useful and accessible. I will make all the samples in a high contrast warp and weft, and include a draft of each weave. Inspired by recently re-reading Elizabeth Barber's Prehistoric Textiles, I am excited about going deeper into …
Sprang
The word Sprang is originally from the Swedish language (meaning to spring or jump) and it refers to a unique kind of textile. It’s neither weaving nor netting - it’s more like a type of braid. Sprang is created when warp threads are systematically twisted around one another, and as a result looks a bit …
Celtic Weaving 