How to Make a 3D Model of a Traditional Iroquois Longhouse

The longhouse was a mode of architecture developed by the Iroquois Indians to accommodate their communal living arrangements. A French Jesuit missionary, Fr. Joseph-Francois Lafitau, described the longhouse: "Fresh poles ... are still further strengthened by long pieces of sapling split in two, and are fastened to the extremities of the roof, on the sides, or on the wings, by pieces of wood cut with hooked ends ...". According to Fr. Lafitua, the wooden frame was covered by "pieces of bark that overlap one another like slate." The account of this French missionary has been verified by the written testimony of other European explorers and by the findings of archeologists. Most of the longhouses uncovered by archeologists to date are approximately 20 feet in width and height, but have varying lengths. One dig uncovered a longhouse the size of a football field. Each longhouse was divided into 20-foot apartments for individual families. The structures were made of sapling trees, tree bark rope and bark shingles. Some common items from your house and yard can be used to make a model of a longhouse.

Instructions

Things You'll Need

• Styrofoam board
• Twigs
• Bark
• Hot glue gun
• Cardboard

1. • 1
     Harvest your materials from outdoors. You will need flexible, pencil-thick twigs and sheets of tree bark. The Iroquois typically used elm wood for the bark shingles because it peeled off the trees in large pieces and, when dried, was quite sturdy.
   • 2
     Measure out the width and length of your longhouse on the foam board. Mark equal spaces along the length of the longhouse for the twig frame.
   • 3
     Cut your twigs to an equal length. Push one end of the twig into the board on one side of the longhouse, and gently bend it over to the other side. Repeat with the remaining twigs down the length of the longhouse to make its frame.
   • 4
     Glue a long twig lengthwise across the roof for support. Add two more lengthwise twigs on either side of the roof.
   • 5
     Glue pieces of bark to the wooden frame using a hot glue gun. Overlap the pieces for a shingled effect.
   • 6
     Cut a front and back wall out of cardboard. Don't forget to include a door.