The top coat of the rammed earth floor is being developed in the longhall. Recipe: 2 barrows of sieved clay subsoil, one barrow of sand, 2 buckets of lime, an armful of hay, 3 litres of full fat milk and a tad of water to make it breadcrumb wet. In the second version half a dozen egg whites were added to the mix. The mix is spread on the wet surface of lower stoney mix, tamped down and spread smooth with plasterers trowel. After a week it can be burnished with a smooth stone to get a more polished surface. The shelter for the hypocaust furnace is also complete – not slave pampering but helping to keep water from the fire.

tamping down the mixture

smoothing off a dampened surface

shelter for the furnace finished