• ARCHAEOLOGY
• WALKING IN MALAGNE
  • Handicraft
    • The manufacturing of iron
    • Exploiting the soil
    • The fabrication of textiles
    • Creating baskets and ropery
  • The art of construction
  • The farm
  • The kitchen
• TEACHERS
• CHILDREN

Creating baskets and ropery

The Gallic Romans produced mainly their daily consumer articles. They also manufactured the agricultural and bestial materials into ropes and baskets.

Between the archaeological excavations only a few remains of baskets and ropes are found because the fibres used are very fragile and exposed to natural degradation. Nevertheless objects and tools were found that possibly were used for the fabrication of ropes and baskets. The usage of these objects is not always clear. Fortunately the works that are imitated by artists provide us with indications about the techniques used. Several methods of fabricating baskets are experimented, as for example matting baskets with the help of a framework, or woven baskets.

The wicker that was used to fabricate baskets was taken of brushes such as the nut tree, the cornel, the blackberry bush or the bramble bush, the willow, the linden, etc. Fine and flexible branches are taken that are long and have a constant diameter. The branches are soaked in order to keep their suppleness.

The material used for the ropery is of vegetable or bestial sources. We can name you some examples: leather cut into pieces, (horse)hair, pelt, wool, flax, hemp, hop, stinging nettle, woodbind and the bast of some trees.

There are many methods to make rope. These are based on all kinds of ways to twist the rope (torsie) or to plait it (wicker work). The plaiting or matting has above all a decorational function. Our ancestors made use of turning and twisting techniques in an early stage already and it seems easier and faster to twist ropes than to mat them.