How to evoke the ice age of prehistory when it is more than 30 degrees outside? This is the challenge of the natural and archaeological park of Samara, at La Chaussée-Tirancourt, in the Somme, where the prehistoric festivals take place from August 13 to 15.
Fire lighting and bronze castings, animal skins on the back
On the program of prehistoric festivals, flint cutting, but also lighting of fires, demonstrations in the forge and casting of bronze in prehistoric fashion. What to put the organizations of the ten mediators of the park to the test by the ambient temperatures. “A heat wave, it is anticipatedtempers Augustin Merkenbreak, himself host and assistant for Somme Patrimoine. But there are not thirty-six solutions: we grit our teeth sometimes, we take turns in front of the public to rest, and we bring water, even if it means having plastic bottles, which is not very prehistoric, of course!“
– Celine Austin
One of the key activities, twice a day, remains the casting of bronze. You must first fan the coal with bellows for 45 minutes, to bring the molten bronze to 1200 degrees. Then the bronzier pours the hot metal into moulds. The operation delights Elena, 11, despite the heat generated: “it’s full of sparks! Me, in their place, I would be afraid of burning myself, but it’s incredible.“
Romain Dumortier, the bronzier in action, is he almost accustomed to high heat: “I am covered in leather to avoid projections. You might think it makes me even warmer, but it isolates me. And then by dint of staying close to the fireplace, when you go outside, it’s almost cool!” The scientific and historical accuracy to which Samara is very attached is at this price, recalls Augustin Merkenbreak. Visitors can take advantage of the water spray system to cool off, and the shaded paths of the park.
– Celine Austin
– Celine Austin