Exactly how much light would there be, inside the typical roundhouse? Would it be lit entirely by light from the entrance during daylight, or would a fire be required? Also, does anyone have any ideas as to the temperature? It's actually for a fantasy novel, but these are fairly untechnological elves, so.
----------
NaNo 2007 - Untitled - complete at 59,837 words!
Now I just have to edit the damn thing.




160,056 / 50,000
Apr 5, 2008 - 13 40
Roundhouses tended to have a central fireplace which was used for cooking every day, and heating when necessary. It is likely that it would have been kept burning permanently, as restarting a fire from scratch could take a while, though that would depend on the availability of firewood obviously. The presence of the central hearth is one of the means of identifying the remains of a roundhouse in an archaelogical dig, I believe.
They also had a hole in the very top of the roof to allow the smoke from the fire to escape.
----------*Hugs*
Lottie
ML for Europe::England:: Cambridge
cambridge_england[at]nanowrimo[dot]org
2007: Rising Angels, Falling Apes - ??
2006: An Ordinary World - 84k+
2005: Dreaming of Jack - 83k+
59,958 / 50,000
Apr 6, 2008 - 02 10
Okay. Thank you!
----------NaNo 2007 - Untitled - complete at 59,837 words!
Now I just have to edit the damn thing.