WALKERS in Chambers Farm Wood now have the chance to see how their ancestors lived a thousand years ago.

A replica medieval-style building has been built in a Lincolnshire wood.

Not a single nail has been used in building the £55,000 building at Chambers Farm Wood, near Bardney, which has just gone on show to visitors.

Instead, traditional skills were used to recreate the building, compete with open beams.

Liz Fleuty, of the Lincolnshire Limewoods Project – a five-year initiative to protect and enhance woodland in Lincolnshire – said: "Timber-framed buildings were once commonplace as farms or domestic buildings but very few remain, particularly in this part of Lincolnshire.

"Having a building that reflects traditional materials and techniques make a unique addition to the wood."

Those living in homes like the one on show would have lived around 1,000AD.

Thanks to the skills of the craftsmen of the day, some of the homes would survive for centuries.

Traditional wood craftsman, Rob Ley (55), from Skendleby, near Spilsby, masterminded the project with help from the Forestry Commission and students from the University of Lincoln's Riseholme campus, near Lincoln.

As part of their studies the forestry students selected and felled local oak trees in the 900-acre Limewoods site.

They were shown how to work with the wood using traditional medieval tools.

A Working Woodlands event showcasing ancient skills will take place at Chambers Wood on Saturday and Sunday.

For more on the project, see Wednesday's Lincolnshire Echo