What materials did Vikings use for their homes?
Vikings, as others of their time, had to be resourceful in using materials at hand, so they built their homes of whatever they could find in the area that they wanted to settle. That meant learning how to build with stone, sticks (wood), or turf (dirt). Most always, they had a turf roof, as it was good insulation from the cold area that they inhabited. Grass would grow on the roof and sometimes goats would climb up and eat the grass. The walls were made of wood posts all around to carry roof beams and rafters. Between the posts the spaces were filled in with what is called “wattle and daub” construction. That is woven from small flexible branches and plastered on both sides with mud which dried something like stucco or plaster. Some longhouses would have livestock pens to keep their cattle, sheep and horses in. There was usually only one low door, where you had to bend over to enter and only one could enter at a time. This made the house easier to defend against intruders.
