One of the first offspring of the Lejre approach within Denmark itself was Næsby, in 1973. It is situated in the northern outskirts of Odense in the breathtaking green landscape of the Stavisådal. It is by now a large centre with many reconstructed Iron Age houses (more particular, 0 – 400 AD), like a small village.
The houses are all going back on Danish excavations, namely those at Hodde, Vorbasse, Lundsgård, and Sarup. The initiative came from a retired school teacher of the local ‘folkeskole’ who intended to give pupils a different experience of the past than what is possible in a class room. Money came from the Odense Municipality and so the project started. Archaeologists form the Municipal Museum (Odense Byes Museum) were involved from the beginning and are still an important support when it comes to building new structures and when they have found new Iron Age sites and artefacts.
The goal is to offer visitors an as authentic as possible experience of the Iron Age, involving as any senses as possible. It is visited half and half by school groups and by tourist visitors. 25% of all yearly visitors attend the Iron Age Market. Experiments are done on small scale, like iron smelting and making glass beads. When walking through the village, the experience is overwhelming.
