Pictures: Looking at Ethnographic Examples of Cordage at the Pitt Rivers

On Wednesday we had a follow up session to the previous week's activity in Port Meadow, and we discovered that the Pitt Rivers is just full of cordage technology.

Some impressive pieces included cordage so fine and long that it looked machine made. The basketry was also interesting to look at, and some were woven so tightly as to be waterproof.

And as soon as it was highlighted to us, we discovered that cordage was everywhere to be found, from baskets, hafted tools, bow strings, fish nets, rope... even some sandals, brought in by Klint as a demonstration (well worn!):

We had brought some materials so that people that missed our rainy day in the meadow could learn the skill. A good way to learn is actually trying it out first on plastic bags (which actually make a really strong cordage):

Wandering through the Pitt Rivers, we continued to find other examples of cordage use from lots of different areas of the world through many different ages. The skill of cordage making will be able to help us in future activities with OxPalTechSoc, where we will be trying to make a number of the items we saw in the museum on that day - it was great for inspiration!

But all that discussion made us thirsty, so we eventually relocated to the Eagle and Child for some cordage making with some actual organic material instead of the plastic bags:

We had a great time at the Pitt Rivers, and will surely return again. The best thing about this museum, because of its seemingly jumbled layout and stuffed cabinets, is that no matter how many times you visit, there is always more fascinating things you never saw before.

Join us next week at the Ashmolean where we will be handling Lower Palaeolithic tools and discussing their manufacture and materials used (check out the below post!)

Making Cordage in Port Meadow - a Beautiful Day!

The weather gods were on our side yesterday as we went out to the dry fields of Port Meadow...

Alright, that's not true.  It looked more like this:

But it was still a beautiful day if you didn't mind the spitting rain in your face! We set out to look for organic materials to gather to make cordage back in the much drier and warmer OxPalTechSoc tent.

Port Meadow is an amazing place - it has been owned by the city of Oxford since the 10th century, and has never been ploughed. Hence it is a unique little ecosystem, with its own Bronze Age round barrows (which are hard to distinguish, as they are just slight lumps on an otherwise flat field - today they were submerged under many feet of water). It is also used for grazing, so you might come across a herd of horses, cows, or the odd fat pony:

When we got to higher and drier Burgess Field, Klint showed us how to find materials with the right properties to strip long fibers:

We then hastily gathered bunches of material (dead stalks from poppy plants seemed to work best), and took them back to the tent, where we sat (steaming as we slowly dried off!), stripped the stalks and twisted the fibers together to make cordage. The cordage was twisted in two strands, which were twisted together the opposite way which meant they locked together. Here are two new professionals at work:

Ringo the OxPalTechSoc mascot was there to help anyone with any questions:

What we were creating looked something like this:

And here is the end result!  One little bundle of very very useful and surprisingly strong cordage - this can be used in trap or snare making, bow making, binding...

Thanks so everyone who was able to make it, we will be meeting next Wednesday at the Pitt Rivers Museum at 14:00, where we will be having an informal look around the collections to see ethnographic examples of cordage, and its applications.  We hope you can make it - an email will be circulating shortly detailing where to meet! Everyone welcome, free for members and £2 for drop-in guests.

See you soon!