Factory (Trading Post) Pruszcz Gdański

An important trade hub at the mouth of the River Vistula and centred around Pruszcz Gdański existed from the 2nd century ad to the mid-5th century ad. It was here that various branches of the Amber Road converged, linking the north with the Roman Empire. The principal route of the Amber Road crossed the Danubian provinces reaching the southern shores of the Baltic. There was also a maritime route at this time which linked Pomerania with the western provinces of the empire, as well as a south-eastern route running from the Baltic to the northern shores of the Black Sea.
The Factory (Trading Post) was the economic and cultural hub of a settlement, constituting a meeting point on the trade route. Sites of this type were encircled by a palisade safeguarding the inhabitants, merchants and valuable trade goods. Trade settlements served a vide variety of functions in antiquity. They were places were trade transactions and social meetings took place and where knowledge and experience could be shared with those arriving from other parts of Europe.

The wealth of archaeological discoveries made since then and their contribution to our knowledge of the history of the Pomerania region inspired the creation of the reconstructed trading settlement known as the Pruszcz Gdański Trading Post (Faktoria w Pruszczu Gdańskim). Today, the Roman period trade settlement is a modern exhibition and education centre. Archaeologicał artefacts recovered from the urban territories of present-day Pruszcz Gdański are displayed in the Chieftain's Hut. The items in question come from the collections of the Archaeological Museum and the Amber Museum in Gdańsk. The exhibition is entitled The Magic of the Amber Road - Treasures of Pruszcz Gdański. Visitors can marvel at the skill of ancient amber-workers, as reflected in masterfully crafted jewellery and dress accessories. The exhibition also showcases items which were brought to Pruszcz from the far-flung provinces of the Roman Empire.

The Hut - an extremely interesting object.

It’s a place, where you’ll travel back in time almost 2000 years.

The Amber Craftsman's Hut is a reconstruction of his workshop. It  presents tools he used, and items that came out his hand. During archaeological excavations conducted in the area of Pruszcz Gdański, there were found a lot of beautiful amber jewellery, reflecting the extraordinary capacity of local amber craftsmen. Just at the entrance you can see his tools: turning lathe, knives, files, flint blades, stone board for smoothing, gimlet drilling, felt and leather of a deer for the final smoothing and others.
 

The Amber Craftsman's Hut

The Amber Craftsman's Hut

Inside, the building is divided into two rooms with the wall made of plaits.

Behind the wicker wall there is a reconstruction of a vertical loom.

The wicker wall. Moreover, there is a fireplace and dome stove, made of clay and branches, dug in the ground.

The Amber Craftsman's Hut and on the left there is a trolley.

The Blacksmith's Hut is a faithful reconstruction of a house from the Roman influence era. All the items of material, wood and wicker were made in the traditional techniques. Before entering the hut you can see the blacksmith’s workshop: a furnace with bellows and wooden barrels with water, used for hardening manufactured items. On a wooden tree stump there are basic tools of there the manufacturer: anvils, tongs, hammers, files, perforating punches, and others.

The Hut itself was made of oak wood and conifers. The substrate is wooden, made of planks of logs. In the hut there are typical household utilities: in the corner you can see a rectangular fireplace, a bed covered with fur and hand-woven, woolen textiles, table and seats, a trunk, performing the functions of a bench for sitting and locker for items as well.

The Blacksmith's Hut, it is worth noticing that - generally - ancient tools used by blacksmiths have survived in its original form until day.

The gate tower and the palisade.

The Amber-Worker's and Blacksmith's Huts are houses incorporating workshops which have been recreated based on archaeological evidence.

The farm

Outer material of a roof

Assisted by re-enactors, visitors to the Trading Post can try their hand at a number of ancient skills, including archery, pottery, amber-working and wood tar production, as well as sample smoked fish made in a prehistoric smokehouse.

Department of Historical Reconstruction
Center of Culture and Sport
Pruszcz Gdański