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Home » The Domestic Sphere » Furniture and objects » Fire-dogs

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  • This photograph of the interior of the Chieftain's House shows a modern copy of an iron age cauldron hanging over the fire.
Interior of reconstructed roundhouse at Castell Henllys Iron Age hillfort, showing the fire
  • This photograph shows the inside of the Chieftain's House.
Interior of a reconstructed roundhouse at Castell Henllys Iron Age hillfort
  • This photograph shows the inside of the Chieftain's House.
Interior of a reconstructed roundhouse at Castell Henllys Iron Age hillfort
Interior of reconstructed roundhouse at Castell Henllys Iron Age hillfort, showing the fire [image 2 of 2]
  • This artefact is a masterpiece of decorative wrought ironwork and the most elaborate of its kind in Britain. Firedogs were placed in pairs around the hearths within roundhouses, signalling the importance of feasting and status display at this time. Most firedogs accompanied their owners to the grave, such was their significance, however, this example was carefully placed in a bog, probably as a votive gift to the Gods.
The Capel Garmon Firedog, dating from the Iron Age [image 1 of 2]
  • This shows the interior of the main living room of Kennixton farmhouse, originally from Llangennith, Gower, which has been rebuilt at the Museum of Welsh Life, St. Fagans. One of the main features of the room is the built-in box-bed situated in a recess next to the fireplace (left side of image). When in use, the cupboard-bed doors would be closed, as they are here, but provision was made for ventilation in the form of decorative pierced panels above. Another interesting feature about this particular example is that it has an attached settle for daytime use. Most of the few surviving examples of box-beds have been recorded within Gower farmhouses, suggesting that the tradition may have been more common here than in other parts of Wales.
Cupboard bed, Kennixton farmhouse, Gower, 18th century