| The fine weather tempted hundreds of
visitors out to Butser Ancient Farm’s June Open
Weekend. All were invited to join in the excavation of the test pits on the Farm as part of the Time Team Big Dig. On Saturday, a pit was dug in the area used to burn the Wicker Man at the Beltain Festival each year to see how deeply the repeated burning had changed the soil and to find what evidence remained from the posts used to support the various Wicker Men over the years. The burning was found to have penetrated the soil to about 5cm and posts, some burned off at ground level and some decayed to varying degrees, were found. On Sunday, a pit was dug in one of the paddocks and finds included worked flint and small pieces of roman tile. A full report will be sent to Time Team for inclusion on their web site : www.channel4.com/history/microsites/B/bigdig/index.html Although everyone enjoyed the opportunity to participate in the archaeology, the main theme of the weekend was wool. The Manx Loghtan sheep were delighted to be finally rid of their winter coats and visitors young and older tried their hand at processing the wool of the ancient breeds of Farm sheep, spinning with drop spindles, weaving and also making felt with it. Demonstrations of colouring the wool with dyes made from plants from the herb garden showed how colourful the clothes of people living 2000 years ago could be. |
 Visitors to Butser Ancient Farm enjoying the opportunity to experience a real archaeological dig  Discussing the finds from the 'Big Dig' test pit with Rosemary Yeaxlee  People of all ages enjoyed making felt balls from the wool from the ancient breeds of sheep at Butser Ancient Farm |
