Building site
Shaping a piece of basalt with a quartz hammer stone to form a hand axe
Chopping wood with stone hand axe
Cut around the base and break the tree down for a clean cut
Cut to length
Hammer stake in to form a post hole
Remove stake and put post in
A vine
Lashing wood together with vine
Lashing rafters together
Rafters in place
"Potato vine" leaves. Use fallen dead leaves, green ones are weaker and shrivel
Skewer leaves onto sticks
Put sticks onto frame and tie with vine
Final ridge cap in place
Tying wall frame on
Uprights for frame
A simple bed
Splitting sapling
Weaving saplings into frame
Making fire with firesticks
Mining clay from the creek bank
Clay, water (in a cup shaped mushroom) and crushed fibrous leaves
Mixing fiber with clay gives it tensile strength to prevent it from cracking as it dries and during firing
A leaf is put down to stop the clay sticking to the stone
The clay is formed into a dish
Coils of clay are added to build up the sides
The coils are smoothed onto previous layers
Each layer should be left to dry slightly before adding new coils so that the pot stiffens and doesn't slump
Several pots
When the pot is completely dry a fire pit is dug to fire it . The pit is at least twice the width of the pot
The pot is put in and covered with leaves and sticks
Surrounding with stones to prevent wind changing the temperature sudenly
Animal skin drying on frame (bottom right corner)
Good sound indicates strong pot
Digging a trench around hut
Water from nearby creek
Mixing mud to coat walls
Collecting paper bark. Although this does not kill the Paperbark tree but it will kill most other tree species
A crossbar lashed to the tree forms a platform to stand on
Placing bark on the roof to cover the rotting leaves (this is a couple of months after putting the leaves in place)
Digging a hole in the wall for a nice fireplace
Stone foundation
Beginnings of firplace
Fire dries the mud out as it is built
Bridging over fireplace entrance
Wattle and daub for the back roof gable
The finished hut is a small but comfortable size