In our present technological age, crafts
and craftsmen have taken a back seat and
have a far less important role than in the past. Mass-produced articles have
become the order of the day. But in the not-so-distant past, the craftsman was a
very important person, particularly in the marshland.
Employment in marshland villages was characterised
by numerous small crafts
associated with the wetland habitat and the raw materials for trade which such an
area produces. The history of marshland crafts is a long one. Suffice it to say that
people gradually came to realise that the objects around them could be used to his
advantage and, by trial and error, learned, for example, that certain twigs could be
bent and fashioned to form baskets, and that reeds could be used to thatch houses
and produce a waterproof covering. Also, in days gone by, the marshland provided
valuable supplies of food. Many animals living in the marsh, such as eels and
ducks, were caught, using methods which had obviously been handed down from
one generation to another. Whilst there can be little doubt that local prosperity for
some came from the drainage of wetland for intensive agriculture, the diversity of
craftsmanship was lost and communities eventually became dominated by
communter families with occupations in the nearest large town.
