What a fantastic weekend it turned out to be in the South Downs! Our annual Beltain festival was bigger and better than ever before, and the team at Butser would like to extend a very warm thank you to all the visitors, volunteers and exhibitors who made the event an evening to remember. This year our mystery wickerman took the form of a great wicker stag, with the body of a man and the head of a deer – complete with white blaze, gleaming eyes and antlers!
The site was filled with an array of brilliant performers and exhibitors, including prehistoric re-enactors, ancient craftsmen, drummers, Morris dancers, live folk music, ancient musicians, storytelling, Roman cookery, astronomy, woodwork, metalwork and magnificent birds of prey. We truly are very grateful to all our performers for making Beltain the magical event that it was meant to be – the visitors seemed thrilled with what we had to offer this year.
Thanks to ticket fees, on-site purchases and the overall generosity of our visitors, we have raised a wonderful amount of money to fund future archaeological projects and develop our education programme. Every year the farm welcomes more and more visitors, and we are keen to develop the site further to enhance your experience with us and really take our visitors on an intriguing journey back to ancient Britain.
We would once again like to thank all our volunteers who worked tirelessly to bring Beltain together. We look forward to seeing you all again in 2017 on Saturday 29th April!
Above: The wickerman by Rebecca Saunders
Above: Pentacle drummers by Inside Hampshire
Above: Drumming by Eleanor Sopwith
Above: Clash of weapons by Eleanor Sopwith
Above: Roman cookery by Eleanor Sopwith
Above: Ancient people by Eleanor Sopwith
Above: Ancient crafts by Eleanor Sopwith
Above: Pentacle drummers by Rebecca Saunders
Above: The burning man by Eleanor Sopwith
Above: Lighting the torches by Rebecca Saunders
Above: The torch procession by Rebecca Saunders
Above: All that remained of the wickerman on Sunday morning!
We have four Saddlebacks from our friends at Manor Farm near Southampton, and two Oxford Sandy and Blacks from Bedales School in Petersfield. When we first introduced them to each other there were the usual squabbles and nibbles of ears, but one week later they have devised a hierarchy among themselves and now tumble along together quite happily.But alas! Our piggies are yet to be named! We have set up a name suggestion box in our visitor centre, and we would love your ideas on what to call our new porcine pals. Until we make a decision, here they are in all their ferocity:[embed]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UWk4FxITV4I[/embed]