Bronze and Iron Age
Our Latest Heritage Project!
Rockingham Forest Trust has been awarded a £250,000 grant by The National Lottery Heritage Fund to implement an exciting three-year heritage project looking at the lifestyles and activities of the Bronze and Iron Age people who settled here over 3000 years ago.
The Project
- The restoration of the Bronze Age Bowl Barrow, bringing it back to its former glory in the landscape, and raising awareness of its historical and cultural significance.
- Building a replica Bronze Age Boat, with community volunteers and specialist advice, using wherever possible, ancient skills and tools.
- Building a typical Iron Age farm settlement, with the assistance of community volunteers, to be a focal point for a ‘Living History Experience’.
- We have also partnered with the Northants Guild of Spinners, Weavers and Dyers, who will be exploring Iron Age textiles and looking to study and recreate clothing from that era using traditional methods and natural dyeing.
Activities for schools and the local community include re-enactments, “day in the life of”, and traditional crafts such as weaving, pottery, jewellery, metal, and wood working.
Supported through The National Lottery Heritage Fund, the project will enable local people to understand, engage with and learn about the lifestyles of the Bronze and Iron Age people.
You can find more project updates in our News section here.
Events
Please see below for events taking place as part of the project.
Events
-
-
Tinsmithing workshops
Stanwick LakesThis critically endangered heritage craft is being kept alive at Stanwick Lakes — and you can be a part of it! Learn the skills of tin-smithing from one of the last tinsmiths in the country.
-
-
Willow Weaving Workshop: Large Flower Sculpture
Stanwick LakesSpend a creative day at Stanwick Lakes learning traditional willow weaving techniques. Learn core basketry skills while creating an impressive large willow flower.
-
-
Heritage Talk: Bronze Age Burials And Ceremonial Landscape
Stanwick LakesBronze Age Burials And Ceremonial Landscape A heritage talk by Professor Stephen Upex The coming of the Bronze Age heralds major changes in the way that society appears to have […]
-
Finds Fridays at Stanwick Lakes
Stanwick LakesDiscover more about the objects you’ve found, 300 years or older, with Northamptonshire’s Finds Liaison Officer, Eleanore Cox.
-
Heritage Open Day
Stanwick LakesDiscover the everyday lives spanning 5,000 years at Stanwick Lakes. From Roman crafts and Viking camps to blacksmithing, Roman pottery kilns and Bronze Age Boat building - explore the skills, […]
-
-
Wooden Spoon Carving Workshop
Stanwick LakesSpend a relaxing day at Stanwick Lakes learning traditional spoon carving techniques. This beginner-friendly course covers cleaving wood, shaping with an axe, and carving with sloyd and hook knives to create your own handcrafted wooden spoon. Set in the oak-framed craft barn and surrounded by 750 acres of inspiring wetlands, it is a practical and immersive introduction to green woodworking.
-
Heritage Talk: The Roman invasion of AD 43 and the conquest of Britain
Stanwick LakesThe Roman invasion of AD 43 and the conquest of Britain A heritage talk by Professor Stephen Upex The Romans sent an invasion force to Britain in AD 43 and […]
-
-
Heritage Talk: Understanding Roman Northamptonshire
Stanwick LakesUnderstanding Roman Northamptonshire A heritage talk by Dr Michael J Curtis Northamptonshire occupies a central position within the landscape of Roman Britain, yet its remarkable archaeological heritage is often overshadowed […]
-
Willow Weaving Workshop: Festive Trees & Reindeer
Stanwick LakesEmbrace the festive season with this joyful half-day willow weaving workshop led by willow artist Chaz Friend. You’ll learn how to create two classic seasonal pieces
-
Christmas Woodcarving Workshop – One Day
Stanwick LakesSpend a relaxing day learning the traditional craft of wood carving by hand which dates back thousands of years, from when we first learned to make sharp tools. This one-day course is suitable for those starting out and also for carvers who would like to develop their skills further.
-
-
Heritage Talk: Northamptonshire Villas and Life in the Countryside
Stanwick LakesNorthamptonshire Villas and Life in the Countryside A heritage talk by Dr Michael J Curtis Roman Northamptonshire was a predominantly rural landscape, where prosperous villas, bustling farmsteads, and productive agricultural […]
-
Tinsmithing Festive Pierced Lantern – 2 Day Course
Stanwick LakesOn this two-day course, you will learn how to pierce patterns into tinplate, form it into shape and use various joining methods to create your own traditional tinplate lantern.
You can also visit our Heritage Museum to find out more about the Bronze and Iron Age settlers on the Stanwick Lakes site.
At the same time you will find displays about the human presence on the site over the past 10,000 years, together with many of the artefacts uncovered during the archaeological excavations in the 1980s.