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- Home
- The Gallic town
- The houses
- Interior arrangements
Doors to houses are often fitted with sills, which may be marked by potsherds or single blocks of stone. Several wooden sills have also been discovered. The use of earth and wood was widespread – floors coated in clay have been found, sometimes paved with adobe bricks or pebbles. At Lattes, the most frequent household structures are those for cooking – hearths and ovens. Most of the hearths were constructed of several components; the base consisted of a bed of potsherds (which acted as a foundation platform) topped by a smoothed-clay surface that was sometimes decorated (late 5th–early 3rd century BCE). This type of hearth is generally located in the center of the room. Basin-shaped and lenticular hearths have also been uncovered. Ovens were most often located in open spaces (lean-tos and courtyards) and protected by simple structures. Some, which were likely used for cooking bread or rolls, were located in the corner of rooms. These consisted of a hearth covered with a clay dome.Benches were also present; these were most often made of packed earth or adobe, but also of stone. They are regularly connected with hearths, and when both are found, they usually signal a collective usage for the room, such as for sleeping or eating. Some were also used for storing vases or various utensils. Other, square structures were built of stone; these "coffee table" arrangements may have been used for preparing meals or for other domestic or craft activities (including milling, grinding food, preparing hides, etc.). Several houses feature pits, which most often served to steady ceramic containers for food or water. Although we know of no decorative elements made of cloth or painting, several floors decorated with shells have been uncovered.