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Mysterious Stone Buildings of Prehistoric Times

The New Stone Age (Neolithic Era) is characterised by the appearance of permanent settlements, as a result of the development of cultivating crops and keeping farm animals. Communities lived in permanent homes in villages. The earliest settlements were established in places where fresh water, woodland (providing timber for buildings and toolmaking), grassland for grazing and crop cultivation were available in the surrounding area. Stables or pens were built close to the villagers´ homes. Dolmens, the characteristic stone structures of the era can be found in several places across continents. They first appeared presumably 12 thousand years
ago. In the Netherlands they are called ´hunebed´.

The name ´hunebed´ was given by the local inhabitants who first spotted these peculiar stone structures. It is a compound Dutch word, which literally means ´Hun´s grave´.

Neolithic people buried their dead in graves just outside the village. Dolmens are such burial places, where the space marked by
the columns and the flat roof was the resting place of the deceased person´s soul.
Archaeo­logical excavations revealed wea­pons, tools, pottery and jewellery buried
with the dead.

The first houses were built of wood or woven twigs and branches, plastered
with clay. The roof was gable or flat, depending partly on the climate of the area. Beds, made of straw and covered with animal hides and fur, were the only furniture. The fireplace was also inside the house.

The clothing of Neolithic people was much more varied than their predecessors´. With the advent of agriculture raw materials of weaving and spinning, like wool, cotton, linen an hemp, became available. The new textile clothes were more comfortable and durable.