- Chapter Eleven -
tenth century AD. Nevertheless, it is a complex tool comprising a main share which
is in fact a pointed stick, a heart shaped undershare fitted with spigots which hold
the main share in position, a curved handle or stilt, all of which pass through a
mortise joint cut in the foot of the main beam and locked into place with wedges
(Figure 11.1). The wear pattern on the undershare (one side was worn away to the
spigot, thus causing the ard to be abandoned) strongly suggests that the ard was
used in a particular and specific manner. One side was continually in undisturbed
soil, the other in disturbed soil. If this is the case, the ploughman must have ploughed
the soil in 'lands' or blocks rather than going up and down the field laying one
furrow immediately against another one. The interpretation of this sophisticated
technique has been enhanced by the construction and testing of a full-scale replica.
The angle of presentation of the main share (the pointed stick to the soil surface) is
C.29° from the horizontal, which ensures it neither bounces along the surface nor digs
itself into the ground. Quite simply, it holds the implement at a steady level in the
body of the soil. The heart-shaped undershare lifts the soil, which then flows past
the foot of the main beam of the ard, having been thoroughly stirred. In practice it
is extremely efficient and is able to cope with a wide range of soils including heavy
loams as well as the light rendzinas. A large number of iron socks or sheaths designed
to protect the end of the main share from excessive wear have been found on iron
age sites throughout Europe. Without such a protection (none was found for the
Donneruplund ard), the main share wears away at an average rate of C.625 mm per
hectare. Given the ease of adjustment for the main share this hardly represents a
problem.
Figure I I.I Replica of the Donneruplund ard. (Copyright: Peter Reynolds.)