Chalcolithic

1997, Northeast Scotland saw the birth of a new archaeological open-air museum: Archaeolink. Goal is to interpret the Prehistory of NE Scotland via living history, craft/technology demonstrations and archaeological experimentation for the benefit of the general public, academia and the educational sector.

At Lake Iseo, the large theme park “Archeopark Darfo Boario Terme” is placed where crafts demonstrations and house reconstructions are the main attractions.

For a BBC movie about Lough Gur, one of the Neolithic houses was reconstructed but already in 1990 was long gone. Nothing reminded of the reconstructed dwelling (Ahrens 1980, 91-92).

The University of Milano had conducted excavations near Latium. The Gli Albori Association decided to construct a village based on that Neolithic up to Iron Age excavations, in Tuscany.

The area of Blicquy-Aubechies is near the source of the River Dender in Hainaut. This has been a pleasant region to settle for centuries. Excavations have produced a clear image of what happened here since about 5000 BC.

The Samara, an environmental and reconstruction park was realised by the Ministry of Culture, the Picardy province and the bank Credit Agricole. It had a predecessor at the Val d’Aisne. One of the reasons to establish this museum was the creation of employment by means of tourism – the Somme area has a long history of unemployment.

Lemba Experimental Village, Cyprus, a long-term project from the University of Edinburgh, the reproduction of a Chalcolithic village on Cyprus. This started purely for research and was an initiative by the LAP of the University of Edinburgh. Initial funding was obtained through research grants by Dr Thomas from the University of Edinburgh, the Royal Museum of Scotland and the British School of Archaeology in Jerusalem (now the Council for British Research in the Levant).