January

Hedgelaying                                      

Learn the ancient art of hedgelaying from woodland master Andrew Birnie.

You will learn how to thin out and lay the hedge to form a stock proof hedge at Butser Ancient Farm.
Work as a team for the day, learn a new skill and see the results.
Maintenance of hedgerows is part of good farming practice and the skills of the hedge layer are in great demand.

£50

March

April

Saturday April 14^th

Carve a WOODEN SPOON 10 – 4 pm

Spend the day whittling away at a piece of willow or birch to carve your own wooden spoon. A gentle, relaxing day with expert tutor, Annette, who trained with Ray Mears.

£50

Sunday April 15^th

USING SPICES AND SEASONING IN ANCIENT ROMAN FOOD

A half day workshop with world renowned Roman cookery expert, Sally Grainger. As a team you will explore some of the apparent similarities and differences between Mediterranean and Romano-British food preparation, aiming to discover new insights and interpretations of Romano British practices. Learn in detail how to use the distinctive spices of Roman Britain, and prepare a recipe created by the whole group using the archaeological evidence discussed.

£40

Sat Apr 21^st

MAKE A CORACLE

Make a modern version of a one-man boat that dates back to early Bronze Age. Used with one paddle on rivers or lakes.

£120

4 day course

Friday April 27^th to Monday April 30^th

PREHISTORIC METALLURGY

This is a practical and theoretical short course on the use of experimental archaeology in examining the production of metals in remote antiquity.

Through lectures on prehistoric archaeo-metallurgy and daily practical workshops, the course will provide valuable experience for anyone working in this field or interested in it. During the practical sessions you will work in small groups to build, operate and record smelting hearths and use them to produce metals. Additionally you will make ancillary equipment such as bellows, crucibles and moulds used for the production of metals from ores.

The course will be held at the world-famous Butser Ancient Farm and your tutors will be Dr Simon Timberlake of the Cambridge Archaeological Unit and Fergus Milton of Butser Ancient Farm.

£300

May

starting Wed May 9^th ending June 20^th

6 WEEK BASKET MAKING COURSE - 10 – 12 am

Sitting in a group making baskets outside or around a fire is one of the most enjoyable experiences.

Spend two hours a week with expert tuition from Annette to carefully and skilfully create a woven willow basket that will be fun to make and give years of good service.

£120

Sat May 12th

USING MEDICINAL HERBS AT HOME 10 – 4 pm

A practical, hands-on, one day workshop with local herbalist Laura Uphill. You will identify local herbs and learn how to use them safely at home to treat disease. Simple diagnostic techniques and safe dosages will be discussed.

Under Laura’s expert guidance learn how to make your own herbal medicinal teas, decoctions, syrups, oils & salves.

£60

Sun May 13

MAKE A ROMAN WEAPON

The lethal weapon, the plumbata is a perfect example of Roman efficiency.

The Romans turned the simple javelin into a deadly throwing weapon for their infantry, by adding a lead weight.

Britain’s leading expert in Roman weapons, Dr David Sim, will teach you how to make a plumbata.

You will get the opportunity to test your creation, safely, and take it away at the end of the day.

£80

Sat May 19

MAKING METALS

Thousands of years ago our ancestors learned how to transform special rocks to make copper metal and produce the first metal tools and weapons the world had seen.

Learn how they did it and see if you too can master the technique and create your own metal from rock to take away as a special souvenir of a unique day.

The day will include the chance to handle and learn about many interesting materials before you work the furnace and see if you can turn rock into metal!

£80

Wed May 30th

THE NATURE OF MEDICINAL HERBS 10 – 1pm

A half-day talk and demonstration on how to identify herbs and treat disease using medicinal teas and decoctions. Learn how herbs have a warming or cooling effect on the body and how this makes a difference when applying herbs to treat disease.

£30

June

Sat June 9th

MAKE AND TEST ANCIENT ROMAN IRON ARMOUR

Use ancient technologies to make fish scale armour just like the Roman army wore. You will make 24 scales and learn how to make the wire to string them on to make your very own sheet of armour. At the end of the day you will get the chance to test the strength of the armour by throwing spears at a human size model.

£80

Sat June 16^th

ROMAN COOKING

Join Sally Grainger in preparing and eating a Roman feast in our villa. A menu will have been selected according to your tastes and through the day you will work together on all the basic cooking techniques practiced by the Romans including baking bread and cakes; using the mortaria (a special Roman bowl) to make the spicy sauces and experimenting with Romano British cooking techniques. You will get to grips with that dreaded Roman fish sauce and come away from the session with a new appreciation for Roman food.

£50

Sun June 17 & Sun July 15

BRONZE CASTING USING LOST WAX TECHNIQUE

Learn a technique our ancestors developed thousands of years ago for making items too complex to cast in stone moulds.

On day one make a beeswax model of an animal figure and start the clay coating that will encase your model to create the mould. Take your model away to finish this work and when you return for the second day we will slowly melt out the wax and bake your mould until ready to receive the molten bronze. Once the bronze cools, a hammer blow will destroy the clay mould and free your unique item ready for you to take home as a souvenir of this magical process.

£100 for two days

Sun June 17^th

MAKE A TRADITIONAL BERRY BASKET 10 – 5 pm

This beautiful and unusual basket is made from birch bark and roots. The design is based on a native American basket and will prove useful when foraging the hedgerows for fruits.

£70

Sat June 23^rd

STONE AGE TOOL MAKING

Discover how our ancestors made tools out of the stones in the ground.

Learn to understand flint as a material and how to knap and work it to make ancient tools.

Discover the talents and skills of ancient Britons and go home with an arrowhead tool you have made yourself.

£50

Sat June 30th

BUTSER DIG PART 1

Now is your chance to be part of an archaeology team.

Learn the basics of excavating with professional archaeologist, Chris Ellis.

Learn how archaeologists piece together the past by identifying the things you find.

£50 per day

Top

July

 Sun July 1st

BUTSER DIG PART 2

The second day of the dig takes you deeper into the world of the archaeologist. Learn how to analyse the excavation and record what you find.

Taking both these courses will provide you with the knowledge that you need to attend and understand a real archaeological dig.

£50 per day

Sun July 1st

CAVE PAINTING

A workshop designed for all ages. Freely explore ancient painting techniques used by cavemen. Under the guidance of artist in residence Madeleine Allison, experiment with natural pigments to make a cave painting to take home.

£25 (£100 for 5 of Madeline's workshops)

Sat July 14^th

WILDERNESS BUSHCRAFT SKILLS

Learn simple, useful skills for survival with Annette, trainee of survival expert, Ray Mears. Learn how to light fires with friction, make natural cordage (rope), use knives safely and skilfully and how to leave no trace behind you.

£50

Sun July 15^th

LOST WAX CASTING DAY

When you return for the second day of this course we will slowly melt out the wax and bake your mould until ready to receive the molten bronze. Once the bronze cools, a hammer blow will destroy the clay mould and free your unique item ready for you to take home as a souvenir of this magical process.

August

Sat Aug 11^th

BUSHCRAFT WORKSHOPS

FIRE MAKING 9 – 11 am

CAMPFIRE COOKING 11.30 – 2 pm

KNIFE SKILLS 2.30 – 4.30

CORDAGE MAKING 4.30 – 6.30

Learn essential survival skills: how to make fire without matches; how to cook over an open fire; how to use knives safely and skilfully and how to make useful cord out of natural materials. Learn how to survive in the wild in a relaxed, enjoyable friendly atmosphere.

Single workshop: £24 Whole day (all 4) £80

Sat Aug 11^th

IDENTIFYING ANCIENT METALS

Learn simple non-intrusive methods for identifying ancient metals. Try the methods out yourself under the knowledgeable guidance of Dr David Sim, Britain’s leading expert in this field.

£80

Sat Aug 18

BRONZE SWORD

Spend the day with Bronze Age specialist, Neil Burridge, a mine of information on the technology of the Bronze Age in Britain and Europe.

This is a practical, ‘hands on’ workshop designed for people with no previous experience.

Neil will take you through the art of forging, cleaning and shaping the blade of your very own 28 inch replica Bronze Age sword, which you get to take away at the end of the day.

£175

Sun Aug 19^th

CELTIC SILVER WRIST TORQUE      

The Bronze Age metal workers in Britain reached new artistic heights with the forging and twisting of bronze and gold in the manufacture of torques, pins and bracelets. Under Neil’s expert guidance you will be using the same techniques and working with 2.4 mm square sterling silver rod to make your own bracelet with twisted body and forged terminals.

This is a practical, ‘hands on’ workshop designed for people with no previous experience.

£65

Sun Aug 19^th

USING EXPERIMENTAL ARCHAEOLOGY TO EXPLORE ROMAN FOOD

A one day workshop to discover, through experimenting with authentic tools and ancient texts, how the Romano-Briitish cook used his kitchen equipment. Compare and contrast the cooking efficiency of various ceramic and metal vessels. Use the ancient, portable oven (the testum) and determine its efficiency. Take part in 2-3 ground-breaking experiments to test out archaeologists’ theories on Romano-British cooking.

£50

MAKE A NOISY TOY FROM NATURAL MATERIALS

This simple, but superbly effective noisy toy will amaze all your friends whatever age. Make a Bull Roarer (as in the film Crocodile Dundee) by splitting, sawing, shaping, sanding, polishing and drilling a piece of wood. Take home a toy to be proud of.

£25 (£100 for 5 of Madeline's workshops)

Wed Aug 22^nd

MAKE AN ANIMAL SCULPTURE FROM NATURAL MATERIALS (10 –am – 1 pm )

Make a simple sculptured animal figure from a variety of natural materials. Let the ancient customs and arts of Iron Age Britain inspire your work.

£25 (£100 for 5 of Madeleine’s workshops)

Thurs Aug 23^rd

FELT MAKING (10 am – 1 pm)

Learn how to make felt out of local fleece. Go home with a highly decorative piece of material.

£25 (£100 for 5 of Madeleine’s workshops)

MAKE AND EAT A FEAST IN THE GREAT ROUNDHOUSE

Experience what it was like to create a feast in Iron Age times. Work as a team to prepare fresh, wholesome ingredients and cook them over the fire in the Great Roundhouse.

£25 (£100 for 5 of Madeline's workshops)

September

October