You are in for a rare treat. Here is a short blog by a fantastic guest: Sarah Taylor from Potted History and PottedApprentis
A little peek at what we use trees for in our work, or at least tree bark Trees are so beautiful but they have also been such a wonderful source of materials throughout human history.
We only even use tree bark that has been gifted to us by those who have had work done on their trees, and we are always grateful for lime bark When we create replicas of ancient pots, from whatever period, we try to use the same tools that the original makers would have used. We make these tools ourselves from the same materials as the originals such as lime bast cordage which is used to decorate this Stonehenge cup.
This often involves mastering another ancient craft skill, in this case, the processing of fibre from the bark of lime trees (Scientific name: Tilia x Europaea, of the family Family: Malvaceae).
The under layers of this bark are composed of what is known as 'bast'. We use it to make cordage and other tools that are then used to decorate Neolithic Mortlake pottery bowls and Bronze Age beakers, food vessels, collared urns and many more forms.
You can learn a little more about this on our Youtube channel. Click the link to learn more.