Crikey!
Brits unearth 10,500 year-old house The discovery of Britain’s oldest house shows one real estate constant over 11,000 years – the craving for waterfront property.
The house was built around 8,500 B.C. in northeastern England on the shores of a lake that has since disappeared. It was round, about 11 feet, 6 inches across, built of timber posts and, said the Associated Press sounding a little like a real estate ad itself, had “a thatched roof and very original features.”
The owners had a dock and a boat. Archeologists found the remains of jetty extending into the lake, believed to be the oldest example of carpentry in Europe, and we know the residents had a boat because the remains of a paddle were also found at the site.
They also had a dog, perhaps several, and made their living by hunting, fishing and gathering. There is evidence there were other houses nearby, meaning it was an actual neighborhood, sort of a Stone Age subdivision.
The original owners of the house were also pioneers of a sort. The archeologists believe they were among the first to move into the area after the glaciers moved out.
Britain at the time was still connected to Europe by land, which in addition to the waterfront lot, the thatched roof and the “original” features would have made for a wonderful real estate ad: “Walk to France.”
Scripps Howard News Service