Workshop

The extraction of metal from ore was a huge technological step in the human timeline, but how was it done? How did people recognise the right rock? And how was it used to make tools?    You can find out on our copper smelting weekend with Dr. James Dilley, who over two days will guide you through the steps of processing ore and smelting it in a furnace exactly as people did in the Bronze Age thousands of years ago. The weekend will start with an introductory talk exploring the geology, science and archaeology behind smelting and how people might have developed the method in prehistory.    As a team, you’ll then work at different stations to crush and sort copper ore, bellow at the furnaces to reach 1000℃, pour in the crushed ore to produce stunning green flames and remove the crucible to pour out liquid copper!   The aim of the first day will be to create enough copper to make axes on Sunday. For these, you’ll make a mould for your axe, cast it yourself and then begin the process of cleaning and decorating the surface using Bronze Age tools.

Find out how people in prehistory used amber to create a range of personal ornamentation, from buttons, beads, pendants and necklaces! Which artefact will you choose to replicate?   Our day will begin with an introductory talk into personal ornamentation and the use of amber from the Stone Age and into the Bronze Age. We’ll take a closer look at what artefacts have been found in Britain, what they’re made from and how experimental archaeology can help to better understand how these objects were made. The rest of the day will be spent working with a piece of amber to shape and drill it into a finished piece. We'll be using authentic tools and towards the end of the day, we'll use lime bast to create cordage so you can string up and wear your finished piece home.   Amber has been collected and shaped by people for thousands of years but we don't get amber naturally occurring in the UK... Where was amber being sourced from in Prehistory? What can the presence of amber ornamentation tell us about the people that lived in the past? Find out on this workshop!   Emma Jones specialises in creating replicas prehistoric jewellery from the Stone Age through to the Bronze Age. Having recently completed a replica of the Poltalloch Jet Necklace, Emma is fascinated by the tools and techniques our prehistoric makers would have used to create the artefacts that have been found across the UK.

Join us on a weekend workshop exploring the amazing archaeology found at Must Farm. On the two day workshop you'll cast your own late Bronze Age axe and wooden handle, and you'll work with tin, amber, oil shale and stone to create a replica of the stunning necklace. One of the most remarkable archaeological sites of the 21st century in the UK is undoubtedly Must Farm. The late Bronze Age settlement that stood on wooden piles above the fenland waterways nearly 3000 years ago only lasted a year before it collapsed after a huge fire ravaged the settlement. The site and excavation by Cambridge Archaeological Unit received huge attention from world media and were frequently featured on television documentaries as more stunning finds were made across the site.   We were delighted to have been asked by CAU to replicate some of the highlight finds which themselves featured in BBC articles and documentaries. We learned a great deal about the crafting skills that happened in the settlement, and we’ve put some of them together to make a Must Farm workshop weekend.