We've won the Sandford Award!

We are absolutely delighted to share some wonderful news with you all — Butser Ancient Farm has won the Sandford Award! 🎉 This prestigious award is the ultimate gold star for heritage education, and we couldn’t be more proud of our team and everything we’ve built here. Read on to hear what they said about us, and what this means for Butser’s future!

If you’re not familiar with it, the Sandford Award recognizes heritage sites that deliver outstanding learning experiences. Think of it as Ofsted for museums, historic sites, and places like us, where the judges look for exceptional school trips and educational offerings that support schools and the curriculum.

Here’s what they said about us (and yes, we’re blushing a little):

‘Schools visiting Butser Ancient Farm can expect an exciting and memorable experience packed with hands-on activities in immersive spaces. Pupils will leave with deeper knowledge and historical understanding, curious to know more and pleased with the results of their efforts, whether twisting bronze for jewellery or building a wattle fence. The beautiful landscape and impressive reconstructed houses provide a wonderful setting for exploring local heritage guided by passionate and knowledgeable staff.’

A huge thank you to the judges for such kind words! We’re honestly so chuffed with this result, and so incredibly proud of our education team for receiving such glowing praise.

For over 50 years, we’ve been dedicated to bringing the ancient past to life, driving forward our research and spurring us to share what we learn with our visitors. Whether you’re stepping into a reconstructed roundhouse, trying your hand at ancient skills like spinning or pottery, or even just soaking up the atmosphere of our beautiful site, we’re all about creating unforgettable experiences for every visitor.

Our educational programme has been a real labor of love – we’ve designed it to inspire curiosity, creativity, and teamwork, while also ticking all those National Curriculum boxes for schools. Our trips are hands-on and experiential, and cover not just history but art, design and technology, science, maths, and more. The programme has evolved and developed so much over the years (and is continuing to do so!) and we’re so grateful to see our hard work validated like this.

Simon Jay, our Director, sums it up perfectly: ‘We’re thrilled to receive the Sandford Award, which is a testament to the hard work and passion of our team. At Butser, we strive to connect people with the ancient past in meaningful and inspiring ways. This award not only celebrates the impact of our educational programme but also helps us to continue expanding and enriching our offerings for schools and visitors alike.’

And we’re not stopping here. We’ve got big plans to make our workshops and activities even more immersive, with exciting new ways to explore history hands-on. Whether you’re a school group or a curious visitor, there’s always something fresh to discover at Butser.

If you haven’t visited us yet (or even if you have), we’re gearing up for 2025 so you can come and see why the judges were so impressed. We can’t wait to welcome you, and who knows – you might leave with a new skill or two!

Here’s to celebrating history, hands-on learning, and this incredible recognition. Thank you to all of you for supporting us and being part of the Butser story!

Learn more about our educational programme here.

DIY Bronze Age Style - update from the Experimentalists

Since the Experimentalists volunteer team began work renovating our Bronze Age roundhouse (see their last update here), they’ve been working tirelessly to not just repair damage but bring the house to life with new furnishings and decorations. With that project coming to an end, Margaret Taylor (Experimentalist and volunteer librarian) shares an update on the team’s work, and a look ahead to their next project.

The whole Bronze Age roundhouse needed tidying up; the walls and the floor. The floor needed attention as the entrance area had become quite uneven. We worked on an experimental patch at the back, using chalk, mud and water. However, this was not robust, although it looked good. After consultation with the Butser team, who repaired the drainage ditch outside the door, and provided some heavy digging help to prepare the ground, we altered the recipe and concocted a heavier duty mix of sieved mud/chalk, and water and completed the work.

Simultaneously, on our Thursday work days, another group tackled the repair of the rear wall of the roundhouse. The wall wattle was repaired and Jacqui added straw bundles between the wall and the roof. The next step was the daubing. Horse manure is a vital component, and was kindly donated from Clare’s horse. Jacqui, who was part of Operation Nightingale group, who originally built the hut, led the way and trained up other group members. It was finally completed by two enthusiastic volunteers; who slapped on the gungy mixture, which worked best on wet walls. This was particularly enjoyed by one of our newest recruits!

We added a colourful painted design to one of the chalk walls. However, although the design looks good it began peeling after less than two weeks, as the chalk wall covering is not robust enough for to retain the paint. A lime wash is more suitable; as shown by other hut decorations at Butser.

Alongside this, come rain or shine (retreating to another hut in inclement weather!), another group worked upon our peg loom mattress, which is steadily growing, with a smart brown and white design, and will be very cosy when completed. It will make a great addition to the Bronze age bed. On sunny days, whilst working outside, this activity proved particularly popular with visitors, who enjoyed chatting to us, and sometimes joining in. Of course, visitors have been interested in all aspects of our work too; some arrive with valuable background knowledge too! But all enjoy hearing about the Farm.

Exploring Iron Age pottery

The Experimentalists have been learning new skills: making pottery. This led me to delve into the history books to find out more.

Francis Pryor (Britain BC) describes how as people became more sedentary and the size of their communal territories became smaller, they adopted pottery.

Of course, it would have taken a very long time before this new skill to spread across Europe, beginning in the Middle East, and eventually reaching us in Britain. By the middle Stone Age pottery was everywhere. Then with the Bronze Age “the appearance of Beaker ware marked a sudden change in culture” (Culiffe). The highly decorated pottery had a variety of uses and it was particularly popular for grave goods. The different styles were linked to their place of origin, either locally made or having reach Britain by travelling/trading. For example, those Beaker pots found in central southern Britain were of a ‘maritime derived’ style and finger incised and all -over corded types were found north of the Humber.

By the time we get to the Iron Age pots were thicker and better fired and more likely to survive in excavations. The Danebury Iron Age Fort yielded a great deal of pottery; nearly 160,000 sherds! Barry Cunliffe writes that: “in the early period (c.500-300 BC) two basic pottery forms were in use; fairly shallow open bowls, usually made in fine sandy fabrics; and large jars, used for storage and cooking, made in much coarser gritty wares. The grits were a deliberately added tempering of crushed flint and crushed shell, mixed in to bulk out the clay of the heavier vessels to make it stronger and less susceptible to cracking during firing.” Experimentalist, Moo, had fun and great success with crafting Butser clay, although she knew that had she used the preparation above her pots would have a chance of surviving the firing process.

As I endeavour to ‘master’ this craft, I can confirm that it does get easier with practice! So, I was relieved to read in Barry Cunliffe’s book, that in Tunisian Berber communities the pottery construction was delegated amongst the community. The men and young boys dug the clay and brought it to the farmstead. The old women usually made the basic pottery, whilst the young women added decorations and tended to the firing. Unfortunately, evidence of our actual ancestor’s routines do not survive.

Of course, this wasn’t a hobby for our ancestors; a pleasurable way to spend time on Thursdays over conversation, supplemented by a packed lunch and biscuits. Although I am sure that they too would have enjoyed a good ‘gossip’!  Elizabeth Wayland Barber writes in her excellent book, in relation to women: “Time was thus constantly available for use to promote survival, whether directly (e.g. by preparing food and building shelter) or indirectly – that is, by trying to elicit symbolically what was wanted. The latter is a use that many of us have forgotten”.

Bibliography: Elizabeth Wayland Barber, Women’s Work: The first 20,000 years; Francis Pryor, Britain BC; Barry Cunliffe, Britain Begins and Danebury Hill Fort.

volunteer library reminder

Volunteers: if you would like to read further on this topic your Butser Library contains a wide selection of reading material on this topic. Just don’t forget to log your loans in and out in the book provided (in the coloured folder)!

I must add too, that there have been several books kindly donated to the Library; so if you haven’t visited, pop up and have a look. Once again, please seek out the Borrowing log (in an envelope on one of the lower shelves), and don’t forget to log your books back in when you return them.

If you’re not a volunteer with us but are interested in becoming one, find out more about volunteering at Butser here.

Caring for your homemade drum

Craftsman, musician, and living history practitioner Lewis Beck gives some advice on how to care for drums made with him during our drum making workshops, using steam-bent birch wood and ethically-sourced goat hide. You can check out all our workshops here.

CARE

• Do not leave your drum near any source of intense direct heat for an extended period.

•  The drum head will contract and release depending on the temperature and humidity. If it sounds ‘slack’, simply place your instrument in a warm, dry place.

•  Never leave the drum face down.

•  Clean with a slightly damp cloth.  

•  If you feel like the outside temperature might over-tighten your drum, simply insert a damp washcloth, or spray it with a water bottle.

•  Use Shea Butter, saddle soap or any other leather conditioner to keep it from drying out and protect it from cracking or splitting over time. Remember, add it sparingly!  

Painting

Your drumskin is a brilliant canvas and will hold vivid colours with ease. Here are a few tips for decorating:

•   Only start decorating when the skin is dry.

•   The biggest killer for creativity is hesitation! Trust in yourself and your capability.  

•   Watercolour (Paint and Pencil): Beautiful, vibrant, and easily applied. Just remember to add water sparingly! Coat with acrylic sealant once dry after application.  

•   Acrylic: A good all-round medium. Apply in thin layers with precision. Coat with acrylic sealant once dry after application.  

•   Permanent Ink: Can be used precisely and does not require an acrylic seal. However, it is not forgiving with mistakes!  

REPAIRS

We understand that damaging a loved instrument is a stressful experience, but by following these simple steps, you should have your instrument back to playing order in no time!

Before you start:  

•  What you need:  

-   Patch of goat rawhide

-   Superglue

-   Medium grit sandpaper  

•  Assess the damage to follow the correct repair guidance.

• Please Note: This repair may lead to a minor change in sound to your instrument

Tears / Rips (Up to 5cm length):  

1) Cut out a section of the patch provided slightly larger than the area of the tear.

2) Lay the instrument face first on a level surface.

3) Apply the adhesive to the patch and press flat against the damaged area from INSIDE the instrument.

4) After the adhesive has settled for approximately 1 minute then lightly sand the affected area with the sandpaper provided. The mix of adhesive and skin dust should create an artificial scar.

5) Once dry, use the sandpaper again to even out any imperfections on the skin.

Holes (Up to 1cm diameter):

1) Cut a section of the patch provided to the size of the hole (Patch A).

2) Cut a second section of the patch provided slightly larger than the area of the hole (Patch B).

3) Lay the instrument face first on a level surface.

4) Apply the adhesive around the perimeter of Patch B and press flat against the damaged area from INSIDE the instrument.  

5) After the adhesive has settled for approximately 1 minute, flip the instrument face up.  

6) Place a thin layer of adhesive to Patch A, then place against the front of Patch B.

7) After the adhesive has settled for approximately 1 minute then lightly sand the affected area with the sandpaper provided. The mix of adhesive and skin dust should create an artificial scar.  

8)  Once dry, use the sandpaper again to even out any imperfections on the skin.

 For any further enquiries, please email us at: Leofric.Designs@Outlook.com  

Win a free family ticket!

This summer, go on a time-travelling adventure at Butser for the chance to win a free festival family ticket! Explore the ancient past, learn skills you’d need to thrive, put your knowledge to the test, and enter our competition to find who’d fare the best. The winner will receive a free family ticket to our festive Midwinter Quest, where you’ll be whisked away on a magical journey through winter folklore.

Read on to see how to enter the competition!

Time-travelling adventures this summer

Get in your time machine and discover how you’d get on in the ancient past! Can you find all five secret symbols scattered through time?

Report for duty as a time traveller to collect your Time Passport and start your adventure… Fill out your passport as you learn ancient skills, explore the past, and go digging for archaeology to put your knowledge to the test.

FREE ACTIVITIES EVERY DAY!

Get hands-on and learn eight new skills over the summer in free hands-on workshops for kids and adults alike.

• Every day: Go digging for archaeology 📿

• Mondays: Create chalk art using flint 🎨

• Tuesdays: Make an ancient sun disk pendant ☀️

• Wednesdays: Learn to spin wool 🧶

• Thursdays: Weave willow stars ✨

• Fridays: Learn to braid the Viking way 🪢

• Saturdays: Have-a-go pottery 🏺

• Sundays: Make ancient rope from grass 🌾

Visiting more than once? With our summer 20% discount on annual passes, they’re cheaper than two trips!

Win a festive family ticket

We’re giving away a free family ticket to Midwinter’s Quest! This Christmas, swap Santa’s grotto for the firelit den of the Deer Queen, or the evergreen hall of the Holly King, and go on a magical adventure through festive folklore.

Here’s how to enter:

1. Join us any day during the summer, and start filling out your Time Travel passport

2. Complete your passport by having a go at ancient skills — you can join us for free drop-in workshops, or have a go at home

3. Show us a photo of your completed passport on Facebook or Instagram. Don’t forget to tag us and use the hashtag #ButserSummer to be sure we see!

4. We’ll enter you into a prize draw for the family ticket, and announce the winner on social media

TIP: If you include a picture of you at Butser or having a go at any of the activities, we’ll enter you into the prize draw twice — that’s twice as many chances to win!

We look forward to travelling through time with you! Terms & conditions apply.

Interior Design Project at Dunch Hill Roundhouse by the ‘Experimentalists’

Margaret Taylor, volunteer Butser librarian and member of the Experimentalists volunteer team, shares an exciting look at the team’s recent projects at Butser.

1300 – 1000 BCE. We are on Salisbury Plain, at Dunch Hill. There is a round house, or at least it seems to be, at first sight, although it may be a stores building. We see a small settlement, where the inhabitants are growing domesticate crops; Emner and other wheats and barley. They have also domesticated sheep, cattle, pigs and horses. This small farm is set in landscape with fences and other field boundaries, with natural woods and grasslands.

We know very little about this house, if in fact it was a house, as this was not necessarily the case in a community settlement, and there wasn’t even evidence of a floor or hearth. In fact, everything about this house is experimental, as the only evidence was the post holes.

This is an ideal project for the Experimentalists, a title suggested for us by John Briggs, of our volunteer team, led by Maureen Page. I joined the volunteer team in late September last year, and am thoroughly enjoying being a member of the group. Since then, we have completed our felted draught excluder for the Danebury Iron Age round house (see The Felters publication below), and a cow/deer skin covering for the Mesolithic shelter. We have also begun working upon deer skins, and we will learn to tan them over the coming months, under the expert eye of Jess, Butser’s workshops and ancient crafts mastermind. However, we are now turning our attention to Butser’s Bronze Age house, from Dunch Hill.

Our aim is to make the house look more homely. First the bed needs to be made more comfortable. We have made a straw mattress, tying together bundles of straw. We completed this in the sunshine of a Thursday morning in early July, with the assistance of Nutmeg, the lovely baby goat. She was quite keen on nibbling the straw, and decided that the best place to have a nap was inside one of the big plastic dump bags!

At the same time other members of our team were breaking up lumps of chalk and making up a ‘paint solution’, mixed with water and applying them to the walls. These will then be painted with artistic interpretations of bronze age designs.

Our next project is to learn how to make a sheep’s wool mattress with a peg loom. We know that our Bronze Age ancestors would have used wool. However, very little evidence has survived, and to find out more about Bronze Age textiles, I read the absolutely fascinating accounts of the lake dwelling houses at Must Farm. Information on this is available in the two open access publications on line (see below), and can be downloaded onto your chosen personal device. They have found evidence of looms and spindle whorls on site but not surprisingly, the catastrophic fire at the site, and the sinking of the houses into the lake has not enabled woollen textiles to survive.

All for now, until the next update  - and Maureen has some exciting ideas for us!

If you’re interested, try reading…

Article on Must Farm at Historic England

The Must Farm Pile Dwelling publications - both volumes are fascinating. Volume 1 provides an overview and Volume 2 provides the detailed research techniques etc; the section on materials is very good for discovering much more about their findings.

I would also recommend: Britain BC by Francis Pryor, and Britain Begins by Barry Cunliffe, for overviews of the Bronze Age.

Volunteer resources

If you’re a volunteer, log in to the volunteer section of the Butser website to find resources on all our buildings and periods, including about the Dunch Hill roundhouse.

You can also find Britain BC and Britain Begins in your Butser Library, along with many other titles including this amazing booklet by John — well worth pursuing!

There is a signing in book on the bottom shelf of the library shelves. Please use this, even if the book is not leaving Butser, as it enables us to monitor book loans. When you return the book, please don’t forget to sign it back in!

If you’re not a volunteer with us but are interested in becoming one, find out more about volunteering at Butser here.

Beltain Celtic Fire Festival 2024: Welcoming in the summer!

It’s Beltain! The ancient Celtic festival celebrated at the beginning of summer, and possibly even the origins of May Day. We celebrated this wonderful festival with an afternoon and evening of music, mead, merriment, and of course, the spectacular burning of our 40ft wickerman. Here’s to good company and sunny days!

This year’s wickerman was a bright-eyed, Stone Age stargazer to celebrate our journey building the neolithic Wyke Down reconstruction. Whilst it always feel bittersweet to see our wickerman up in flames, this giant’s presence overlooking our Wyke Down site this Beltain feels like a good omen for the future of our building.

Thank you to everyone who joined us for this wonderful event! To everyone who joined us, to all our visitors and volunteers and supporters here, thank you for making things like this possible.

Stay tuned here for some of our favourite pictures from the event!

relive the magic

Watch the full commemorative video on Butser Plus for as little as £2.99!

beltain celtic fire festival 2024 photo gallery

WITH ALL OUR THANKS

We are a small team from a small museum, and Beltain is an incredibly ambitious event for us to hold each year — one only made possible by an incredible number of wonderful people working very hard.

To all our staff and volunteers, thank you for your tireless work in preparing for and running this event! To the Friends of Butser Ancient Farm for your wonderful support, thank you.

To the Saxons of Herigeas Hundas, the Romans of Butser IX Legion, the ancient musicians of Here Be Flagons, to all the other reenactors and living history practitioners who helped bring our ancient farm to life, and to everyone who turned up in costume — thank you.

To the iconic Feckless who always gets us up and dancing, to the brilliant bards of Fae as Folk, to the energetic Courtiers, to the dynamic duo of the Folk Bus, to the the song-master Damh the Bard, to the beautiful sounds of Liz Overs, to the endlessly energetic Pentacle Drummers, and to the classic Ukes of Hazard, thank you for your wonderful performances.

To Jen Atkinson, Kit Helme, Jon Wylie, Tom Bird and Martin Green, thank you for your wonderful talks on herbs, cunning women, singing, dying, foraging and archaeology. To Beltane Border Morris, Flying Iron, the Bowmen of Petersfield, Steamship Circus, Ostara the Bubble Fairy, Jez Smith, and Eva Greenslade, thank you for your work offering unique and incredible performances and experiences, from handfasting to axe throwing to archaeoacoustics.

To Neil Burridge, Corn Dollies by Brigid, Joe the Smithy, Craig the Saxon Forager, Fergus Milton, Jim Clift, and everyone from Colchester Historical Society and the Ancient Wessex Network, thank you for your wonderful demonstrations of ancient crafts and metalworking.

To Jonathon Huet and Dawn Nelson, thank you for bringing such magic with your wonderful stories.

To HantsAstro for your interesting and interactive stall, thank you. To Chalice Mead, Three Copse, the Whitelands Project, Langham Brewery, Mr Whiteheads, and Blackmoor Estate, thank you for supplying us — whether that’s with mead, local greenery, or our very own unique Beltain Cider!

To craftsfolk and traders Butser Crafts, Feral Fibres, the Wood Beyond the World, Intelligent Hand, Pixie Made, the Special Branch, Kevan Dyne, Silverstrand Jewellery, Chris Page Design, Minerva Crafts, Wesnet Services, Pipers Honey, Wild Willow, Luna Skies Creations, Hare and Tabor, Finn’s Fire and Woodcarving, Woody Wonders Twig Pencils, Haus of Paint, Tangled Muses, the Special Branch, Gina McAdam, Amongst the Gorse, Fantastical Kingdoms, Woolleymamma Leather, Willow and Crafts, Petal and Plume, and Gwen’s Garden — thank you!

To Crêpe Britain, Matt with the hog roast, Earth to Oven, the Cookhouse Street Food, Eden Eats, Off Grid Espresso, Stable and Ground, and Sharon and Wendy of the Butser Bakes stand, thank you for all your work to feed everyone!

To friends unnamed but not forgotten, thank you.

And finally, to our supporters on Butser Plus, to our visitors, and to you 💚

Win a free family ticket for 2024 this winter!

It’s the season of giving! To celebrate the return of our magical Midwinter Quest, we’re giving away a free family ticket every weekend! Read on to see how to enter…

Midwinter magic at Butser

By popular demand, the Deer Queen is back at Butser! Meet her and the Holly King on Midwinter’s Magical Quest, and step into a winter wonderland at Butser for a fabulous festive adventure. Discover winter folklore and escape the commercial holidays on this unique non-denominational day out!

Swap Santa’s grotto for the firelit den of the Deer Queen, or the evergreen hall of the Holly King. Meet characters from winter folklore, and help them restore the light to the land with their magical trail! That’s not all — get hands on with make-and-take crafts to create gifts and decorations, and say no to plastic by using all-natural materials. Explore our ancient houses transformed by winter magic, and get immersed in winter traditions from a simpler time.

Win a family ticket every weekend

We’re celebrating alternative family days out this winter, and that’s why we’ll be giving away a free family ticket every weekend. One lucky family who joined us on the quest will receive a free ticket for up to two adults and two children, to be used any time in 2024.

Here’s how to enter:

1. Join us for Midwinter’s Magical Quest on any of the days it’s running.

2. Take a picture of your merriest midwinter moment! Dress up for the quest, show off your crafts, take a picture with the Deer Queen or Holly King… Whatever makes you feel merry!

3. Show us your merry midwinter photo on Facebook or Instagram. Don’t forget to tag us and use the hashtag #ButserMidwinter to be sure we see!

4. We’ll pick our favourite photo after each weekend. Make sure you’re following us so we can send you your tickets if you win!

We can’t wait to see your merriest midwinter photos! Terms & conditions apply.

A royal celebration for our new Roman garden

After a year in the making, hundreds of volunteer hours, and over 10,000 authentic Roman tesserae (mosaic tiles), our formal Roman garden is finally open — and we couldn’t be more delighted!

Today marked the official opening ceremony, and we had the distinct pleasure of hosting a very special guest to officiate. His Royal Highness Prince Richard, the Duke of Gloucester, has a keen interest in architecture and historic buildings, so we were delighted that he joined us to officially open our new Roman garden.

20 years in the making…

The opening of the new garden couldn’t have been more perfect — the villa itself opened 20 years ago this October, so what better way to celebrate than giving it the formal entranceway it deserves?

It’s also a great example of how our work at Butser is never done. In the 20 years since the villa was completed (the first to be built in the UK for over 1000 years!), it’s seen numerous renovations and redesigns as archaeologists’ understanding of Romano-British villas and aesthetics have changed. The biggest renovation was in 2018, which is also when we laid our very first mosaic — amazing to think that in just a few short years we’ve gone from no mosaics to three!

A Roman country garden

The new Roman garden has quickly become one of our favourite places at Butser — and we hope if you visit you’ll see why! It beautifully represents the types of garden features and plants found in Romano-Britain. We go into it more in our video on Butser Plus, but it’s filled with 65 varieties of plants either indigenous to Britain or introduced by the Romans themselves. At the centre lies a stunning mosaic made of over 10,000 authentic Roman tesserae (tiles), rescued in a dig from under the M4 and generously donated to us for this project.

In fact, none of this would have been possible if it weren’t for the kindness and generosity of our supporters. This garden was entirely funded in memory of Joan Rundle, a long-time Butser volunteer and Friend of the Farm with a special interest in Roman gardens and their plants. May her legacy long stand at Butser and be enjoyed by thousands of people in the years to come.

a royal opening

What better way to celebrate the completion of this special project than with a special opening ceremony? We were honoured to be joined by the Duke of Gloucester, and gifted him a replica bronze axehead crafted on-site to say thank you. After a guided tour of our ancient buildings, the Duke saw demonstrations of timber framing and metal-smelting in action, and even met some enthusiastic students on their school trip! Finally, the Duke officially opened the garden and mosaic to an audience of the original villa build team, mosaic and garden volunteers, and local dignitaries.

We’re incredibly proud of the work we do at Butser, and the things our dedicated little team can achieve, so it means a lot to us to have this kind of support and recognition from a royal visit. The last time we were visited by a royal was in the 70’s, when the queen herself visited Queen Elizabeth Country Park and Butser Ancient Farm, and met our founder Peter Reynolds!

The growth of Butser

Everything we do at Butser is a labour of love, and this garden is such a perfect example. But gosh, it’s so worth it. Just a few months ago, the area outside the Roman villa was just a patch of grass — what a difference some time and love can make!

In many ways, the growth of the villa reflects the growth of Butser itself. Our director Simon was a member of the original villa build team — and, as he says, it ‘hooked’ him on Butser. We’re all so proud of how much this little site has grown in the last 20 years, from a small research site barely open to visitors to a thriving centre that hosts over 60,000 visitors annually, all eager to learn about our rich past. The research is still at the heart of what we do — but now, we share it with more people than ever before.

So… What’s next?

You know us, we never sit still for long. We’re already working on our next big project: a Stone Age roundhouse that would have looked out over a wood henge! We’re so grateful for the incredible support that allows us to keep experimenting, keep learning, and keep sharing our work with as many people as we do. We hope you love the Roman garden — and what comes next — as much as we do!

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Want to help us keep experimenting, and join us on the journey? Support at Butser Plus for the price of a coffee, and get documentaries and updates on our latest projects!