What is the Butser Ancient Farm Archive 1973–2007 website?

Updated

The Butser Ancient Farm Archive 1973–2007 is an online archive of the world-famous Butser Ancient Farm project, created to give students and researchers access to the methods and results of its experimental research into prehistoric and Roman agriculture and building techniques. It is a reference and research resource rather than a visitor or booking site, and it covers the project's work under its founding director, the late Dr Peter Reynolds (1939–2001).

What the site is for

The archive exists so that the experimental work behind Butser Ancient Farm can be studied in detail. According to the site, it is "intended to allow students and researchers access to his methods and results." That framing matters: the material is organised around research documentation, not around general tourism information.

The site also points to papers that explain the project's context and approach, including:

  • A paper outlining the history and development of Butser Ancient Farm, the philosophy and methodology of the research, its use in education, and its relationship to the general public.
  • A paper summarising Peter Reynolds' views on what constituted Experimental Archaeology.
  • A list Reynolds made in the 1990s for a seminar, which he called "Golden Nuggets" — an impromptu summary of the main themes of his work and its outcomes.

The site notes that the website and the full publications together give a complete picture of the experiments behind that synopsis.

Main content areas

The archive is organised into broad sections that reflect the project's scope:

Section What it covers
History of the Project Development of Butser Ancient Farm over time
Research The experimental programme and its results
Publications Written outputs, including monographs
Image Archive Visual documentation of sites, structures and experiments

The research listings on the page span a wide range of experimental topics, including cereal yields, climate, grain storage, grain dryers, plough zones, carbonised seed, earthworks, metals (iron and tin), structures such as roundhouses and a Roman villa, geophysics, ploughing, hoeing, sowing, manuring, soil, and arable plant communities.

Sites and structures documented

The archive also records the different sites and experimental structures associated with the project. Named locations include Little Butser Demonstration Site, Fishbourne, Wroughton, Bascomb, and various outstations. Structure and site entries include roundhouses, a turf house, Maiden Castle, Balkesbury, Moel y Gaer, Pimperne, Longbridge Deverill, Cowdown, and Moel y Gerddi.

Who runs it and what happened after 2007

Peter Reynolds was the founding Director of Butser Ancient Farm. The archive covers the period 1973–2007, ending with the era of the final site he created at Bascomb. That site is now run by Butser Education CIC, a separate organisation from the archive itself.

The name "Butser Ancient Farm" and the logo representing a roundhouse are registered trade marks of Christine Shaw, as stated on the site.

How to use it

If you are researching experimental archaeology, prehistoric or Roman farming, or ancient building techniques, start with the history and methodology papers to understand the project's approach, then move into the research and publications sections for specific experiments. The image archive is useful for visual evidence of structures and site work. For anything not covered by the site itself, the archive provides a contact link for the Archivist.