00:00.00 archpodnet And welcome back to segment 4 of episode one zero three we're still here with trevor very happy to have him here so how the more that we dive into butter ancient farm like the more awesttruck I've become at all the different things that you guys do there. It's not just hey this is Roman age Britain. This is how they did things. Iron age roman it you know the whole thing but it's experiential like you guys provide ah a you know, almost like a Disney world experience. It's not just the tangible that exists at buttser. It is the ambiance. It is. It is the environment that which you create and could you please speak to more about how you. And your team there create this lived environment at butser. Okay. 00:45.87 Trevor Creighton Yeah, yeah, obviously the first step is the physical so we build these buildings but um, the the thing that that allows us to do is have this immersive environment that's suggestive of the past. Um, if we've done you know our best job. Then we've got a building that is a reasonable guesstimate of what life or what a building was like in the past we we certainly almost never build something that was exactly like a building we can never possibly seen have seen. But what that gives us is this sort of tangible 3 hree-dimensional environment in which people can be engaged so a large part of our mission really is public archaeology. You know the outreach to the general public um to to tell people why archaeology is important why the past is important and I think. Um, a lot of public archaeology is actually done on things like dig sites. Um, and so I always picture someone standing in a trench pointing at little flags on the ground saying well that's ah that context over there I put 3 parts shards of pottery out of there and that was really interesting. So there's. If you're interested in archaeology. That's really interesting or if you know something about it. But if you just sort of think I'd like to know more about the past then I don't want to kind of denigrate that kind of public archaeology. but but I think what we can do is connect with people a little bit more easily so people can. You know they can come into our spaces they can. They can get a sense of well people in the past were not just kind of grubbing around in the dirt living in caves they were ambitious. They were capable. They could build things we can give people then. Ah, little taster of information and we can tell people what was unique about the late stone age. What was unique about the bronze age where it occurred and when it occurred in Britain but from there from that point on it's then down to the to the people who were visiting us. So if we're doing our job right? They are the ones who become the archaeologists because in those spaces those immersive immersive spaces that imperfectly represent the past that what we hope is they will take the little bit of information and the clues we give them in that environment and think more deeply about the past. Get an appreciation as I say for the ambition of people in the past and start to sort of even realize what it was like to live without electricity what it was like to live without mobile phones without health care of a sort of recognizable kind. Um. 03:23.52 Trevor Creighton Or on the other hand to think about how simple it was. You know how not having social media maybe life Maybe life's a little bit less complicated. So It's ah it's a conduit to more direct connection to the past which I think should stimulate intellectually people thinking. But also I think it's also a way to value the past and at the very least that should mean let's not bulldoze everything around us. Let's sort of think some of these things are worth keeping and some of these things are worth studying and I think ours being ah a really tangible environment is is almost a unique or 1 of a very few. Range of places that can do that. 04:01.20 David It is a really unique place for sure like just hearing what you're saying and looking at the pictures because I mean Carlton just spoke of one There's not many places like that in the states mostly because we don't have. Like a european prehistory here. We do have pre-contact indigenouss americans and we have like replica roundhouses. There's some replica villages but nothing like you know that to that extent where it's like a community based thing that I know of Carlton. Maybe you do what. 04:31.85 archpodnet And I was thinking like the closest thing we might have have is like Williamsburg and Jamestown. But even then they're on a different level because like it's they're historical and we know what how they built the things what they were doing. We have the records where like you know you do have historical documents with the romans but as you said they're just so. 04:36.58 David But that's like yeah. 04:51.30 archpodnet Cant in descriptions of of native britons and how they were living and so yeah like I've struggled. 04:54.45 connor Yeah, we don't we don't have a place that encapsulates like 10000 years of prehistory or history and prehistory like we don't we don't have that in one central location that is easy to access I mean I think we have like disparate pieces of that in different parts of the state but like nothing. 04:59.86 David Ah. 05:13.62 connor It's like hey we're going to do this all in 1 place and really try to reconstruct it because it it would be fascinating to see that you know roundhouses do some mas to verde you know things like that. But we we just don't have a place for it. 05:25.73 David Yeah, and like 1 of my favorite aspects of like american or I guess pre-contact Americas is like just eastern woodlands longhouses just how big they were how they're just made of completely natural material and I was like wondering when I was visiting 1 ah, recently when I was in New York like why am I so like attracted to these things like they're just I guess because it's natural and stuff like that but diving into it like primates great apes specifically are the only primates that make nests. So. It's like. When you step inside something like a bronze age thing and like the community builds it together. It's like a very like you know human thing to have a structure and you can see how it's built. We're kind of disconnected from that with contracting and you know massive construction on houses like it's just something that happens you know, um, ah but. 06:08.20 archpodnet And yeah. 06:14.42 archpodnet I saw like at at Meadowcroft Rock Shelter they have like a indigenous village type thing present but they have like the palisade wall but it's small, but even then it's not like indigenous people in Pennsylvania talking about it. You know it's not. 06:31.89 David Right. 06:32.75 archpodnet You know the people that are representing this this woodland period village aren't aren't indigenous themselves so there's even that level of disconnect where you guys at buttser are like we are you guys are the britons to answer Monty Python you know like you guys you guys are the ones. 06:45.32 Trevor Creighton That. 06:48.89 connor I King and who. 06:50.68 archpodnet You know you guys have that you know so you so you have that where you could sit there like this is this is your history right in front of you like this is how your ancestors so long ago did this and this is how um we lived at that time period and how things changed between the Bronze age the iron age. 06:51.89 Trevor Creighton Um, well. 07:09.20 archpodnet And how the Roman intrusions ah interacted with with the space and how you know you have that ability to connect people there whereas you know some of these places that we have in the states. There's not you have that disconnect and and that experience of that's other.. That's the other those are the people that used to live here. Being told by the people that didn't live here right? and. 07:31.31 Trevor Creighton Yeah I actually I think there's a surprising ah level of um, political intrigue in archaeology in Britain which is ah is not dissimilar to to say the United States or Australia. But it's a lot less visible. So archaeology can get kind of weaponised as it's been described in political debates and it has been quite recently. Um, so we have a ah mission to make sure that we're being inclusive and not sort of me saying these are my ancestors which means they might not be yours. Um. And there's another great lesson that we can actually take directly from archaeology is not about this as a sort of single descent to a kind of modern britishness. But in fact, even in the last eleven thousand years it's waves of groups of people some of whom stayed some of whom have been in conflict. Um. Over thousands of years that has made this sort of melting pot of humans and I don't particularly like Rome and Britain I have to be honest, you know it's the most divisive civilisation at least up until about 1700? Um, but there's 1 particular object from Roman Britain that I love which is ah a um. Gravestone a tombstone you could say it's called a steeler and it's by a um, a dedication. A really beautiful dedication by a man called barratees I think his name was to his wife who had died um her name from memory was Regina Kaiavallanis so we know from baratee's biography that he was Syrian Regina Cachovallanis is ah unquestionably a bri probably a freed slave. He didn't need to put that up and he didn't need to put such an eloquent message. He did it. You know we can presume out of love and so I think I think we are very careful to stress that you know. We are not britons. We live in a country called Britain that has this really polyglot. Um, amorphous history of all sorts of people of all sorts of types which continues to the present day. So I think actually that's one of the great things we can do through these buildings because. The buildings that we build change dramatically over time and that's great because it means that there are cultural differences social differences and sometimes differences in people who are building them so that's actually a really important message that we can. We can also tell through these ah these disparate buildings. 09:58.97 archpodnet You damn I don't know what to say that was great man. 09:58.99 connor Well yeah, well said well said um I think taking like a slight pivot. Um be could you kind of explain um to our listeners. What Buts are. 10:01.56 David Yeah, and. 10:15.46 Trevor Creighton Yeah, yes I can do that. 10:16.27 connor Pluses and how they can get access to something like that. 10:25.15 Trevor Creighton We're a really great site to visit obviously great site to be and as I said we get about 55000 people a year but it's a big world and um, I'm speaking to you in the States. So. It's not easy for you to visit and we've had quite an impact with with covid nineteen restrictions in the last year so we've we've developed a platform called Butserplus which is an online platform. It's ah so a subscription ah channel on Vimeo which allows people through a subscription to kind of get regular updated slices of life at at buttser. So. Obviously it's a way to diversify our income stream but also it's a way to open our doors to a much bigger world. So the the sort of themes we tackle are archaeological so we have regular talks sometimes with staff about what we're doing with our experimental builds and very often. We'll get some. Um. Some some guest archaeologists or others who work in other other fields of archaeology. These are not really pitched an academic level. They're a popular level but they're not a dumbed down level and I've done a few of them where I've sort of interviewed a couple of people who've. Who've come to sight I've absolutely been amazed at what they have to tell me about their area of speciality and what it's telling them and not because they're telling me about isotope analysis but because they're telling me about look. We've got this evidence to say these people did this which I think we can all connect with you know what. When we can get this fine-grained detail about what people did in the past is absolutely fascinating. Um, so yeah, buttserplus is becoming a really good a good platform for kind of getting us out there and and some of the clips are really more about tranquility. Um, one of the things that we. That we love about working in the place we do is. We're kind of set in a very rural landscape so we're we're in this little valley surrounded really by surrounded by agriculture and trees and it it is genuinely a great aspect of the place to work in. You know, even when the day is not going so well you can work. Walk out the door I call them sight inspections which I guess I hope my boss doesn't listen to this It's basically me just sort of scving off and walking around the place just to kind of destress and I know from what people tell me visitors tell me that that's that's the experience they get so what we're trying to do is kind of package that up as much as possible and in just some of these nice little. Pleasant segments which if you can't be there in reality at least, you can get a slice of it in cyberspace. 12:59.45 connor Yeah I think we'll we'll have a link to that. Um, in the show notes. So for folks who are interested in that and they're super high quality videos. Um, yeah, so please check them out. 13:10.28 David Um, how far from like Heathrow would it be to get there. 13:15.52 archpodnet So hour and a half right? That's what we figured out. Yeah. 13:17.19 Trevor Creighton Ah, now and a half from Heat ray. 13:19.39 David Okay, so per americans listening that's like an hour from Maine London or like the airport in London um I think that's the biggest one you got right him. 13:27.92 Trevor Creighton Yeah, we're about yeah, that's right heath throws near London's main airport gatwick is another one near London um, so we're about seventy five miles from either of those. Ah, those airports and on on quite a main road. So. It's not a hard place to get to actually you can package a trip to to butsa and Stonehenge fairly comfortably in ah in about a day and a half I just throw that in there. 13:59.73 David My bed. 13:59.97 archpodnet I'm like already planning a tripman I'm trying to figure out my my UKArcheology tour and buttser is definitely going to be on there for a couple days because the amount of stuff that I've been talking about um the amount of opportunities that you guys offer for anyone. It's not just. Come check us out like you guys have workshops all the time you can you can make your own Bronze sword or Bronze Accent buttser your own jewelry meditate and learn like he old English with ah is she a linguistic anthropologist or linguist. Yeah, all right. 14:29.49 Trevor Creighton She's a linguist and she really works more with old welsh and old irish and and I no no old english is a yeah, it's an unusual language is germanic language and it it it. At first glance. 14:34.29 archpodnet Yeah, so not ye old English Yeah, my bad. 14:45.67 Trevor Creighton Nothing like modern english but yeah, she works more with old irish and old welsh but they look if you know a lot of people probably don't realize that there are different languages spoken in Britain. So one of which is welsh. Um. Scotts Gaelick is another language and there's a small group of people who speak cornish but these languages all kind of predate this sort of anglo-saxon invasion. in fact the clue is in the name um england is about 2 wo-thirds of the island of Britain and England is of course angelland. And english is english so these anglo-saxons who come in about sixteen hundred years ago kind of give us the modern language and give us the name of of England which separates Britain out into these 3 places but our language now english looks very big. At first glance look nothing like say welsh or irish which is also a related language but she shows it that they are related. They are actually quite closely related all from the same kind of underlying indo-european family of languages but it's so much fun. It's just so much fun. It's just you know it's another way that we've got this great immersive environment. But you've got these these multiple conduits to to sort of trying to better understand the past and language is a fantastic one. 16:02.73 archpodnet Absolutely, what's been fascinating have you on Trevor like really excited about the work that you're doing at buttzer as well as all the opportunities and education that you guys are providing to the public and we're really hoping for our audience that you guys. Please check out. Not only their website which will be in in the show notes down below but also think ah donate or subscribe to buttzer buttser plus you guys also have a blog butter blog also will put down below to see kind of some of the things that you guys are doing like top 1 building an iron age toilet I imagine that's ah for our archaeologists out there. Wow in the field. This might be practical for you? Um, so you know absolutely man. So what are right? So I guess right before we end the show Trevor where are a couple um sources. 16:42.40 Trevor Creighton Um, that's a prayer I've. 16:42.96 David Yep. 16:48.66 connor Don't sit on that. 16:55.80 archpodnet Books articles videos that you would recommend for anyone interested in. Um, you know iron age Britain or buttser farm. 17:02.15 Trevor Creighton Um, most of our stuff on but ah bus arrangement farm is now um out of print but Roman Britton I'd recommend just looking up an author called Mary Beard um she does a lot of really interesting stuff actually for prehistoric bill Britain. There's It's a slightly older book but it's still really readable by a guy called Francis prior Pryor and it's called Britain bc um the other one I'd recommend is um on the anglo-saxons. Ah there's one called the Anglo-saxon World um so that's that's that's a bit more of a tome. It's a bit of of a hard to read if you want a little bit of um, more of a smattering ah of Britain a d after from the romans on Francis Prior has also done a book called. Britain ad so yeah there there are a few good things and they'll all have references in them. So if you get really enthused. You can go down that rabbit holele of specialization. 18:04.58 archpodnet So excellent. Thank you. 18:07.83 Trevor Creighton Well thank you Gentlemen! Thank you very much for having you. It's absolutely fantastic. 18:12.19 archpodnet Yeah, absolutely and we'll have the contact information for Butzer Ancient Farm in the show notes down below. You guys do have an Instagram account. Let me pull that up Chris take a cut this out here because I was looking for it. 18:12.92 David Um, yeah. 18:29.74 David So I was just doing the same. 18:31.18 archpodnet Um, yeah, where did I see it. 18:38.24 connor Butzer underscore ancient Underscore Farm 18:39.23 archpodnet Okay, right, bring us back in Chris um, so your guys' Instagram account is at buttser underscore ancient underscore farm and so that will be down below. You guys have some pretty interesting videos on on there as well and your guys's email. 18:39.45 David Okay. 18:56.85 archpodnet Um, is admin at Buttsran Form Dot I mess that up my apologies. Okay, let me redo that yeah wait. That's a different one than I have here I have. 19:07.18 Trevor Creighton Um, duck a dot. Okay. 19:15.62 archpodnet Admin at http://buttserplus.com 19:16.17 Trevor Creighton Um, just the emails. Yeah, but to Buttserranch Farm Dot Co Dot U K that's that's that's a better unless you want to subscribe just a general contact is just admin at http://buttserrancharm.code.uk 19:27.20 archpodnet Oh right? right? right? Excellent so email is I need to write this down. It's late in the day I'm so sorry Trevor that's interesting. Yeah, even even with at the main maybe yeah well yeah, even your main page. The contact is much or plus. Yeah. 19:36.79 Trevor Creighton Um, that's right. 19:38.83 connor It's not even late in the day. 19:40.27 David It's it's like morning. 19:42.33 Trevor Creighton Um, light. Well, it's light somewhere that's false. 19:46.98 archpodnet Damn okay, let me it's slate. It's all right? It's sad's it's looking out. Trevor's window has me tired. Yeah perfect sweet yes and please of let me. 19:50.24 connor I can see I can see the dark and your bit when I Why don't you just say they go to the website to find all their contact information will not do specifics. 19:51.12 David That's true, Beijing. 19:55.16 Trevor Creighton Um, yeah, that's. 20:01.26 David Yeah. 20:06.42 archpodnet Yeah, and please head on to the website to Findd all the specifics as to how you're asking get contact with them check out their events figure out where they are and how to best support this amazing experimental archeological locality. 20:19.86 connor Yeah, Thank you so much for joining us and because this is a life in ruins we have to ask you a very very important Question. So if you had the chance to do it all over would you still choose to reconstruct. And live a life in reconstructed ruins. 20:38.31 Trevor Creighton Yeah I I don't think I would change a thing about my past even even the decision not to study archaeology forty years ago maybe it was a good thing because I'm doing exactly what I want to do now and whatever got me here I yeah I thank it. 20:54.94 archpodnet Excellent, Well everyone we just interviewed ah Trevorreightton who is the project archeologist at buttser Ancient farm. 20:55.75 David Awesome. 21:02.43 David Hey guys you know what time it is. It's time for me to ask you to rate and review the podcast specifically on Apple and Spotify. Ah you know, send us an email leave us comment up but specifically review us on Apple and Spotify. Um, after you go and check out ah buster or at butzer farms on you know the website. Hop on over to our ah podcast and just go ahead and give us a rate and review appreciate it. 21:28.55 archpodnet And with that we are out and okay, yeah, okay and everybody it's that it's your favorite Easter egg of the episode. 21:32.28 David I Have to start getting aggressive with those but sorry about that. 21:45.73 archpodnet And I actually deleted the sound but it's okay Connor what do you have for us today for your joke that all painful buddy. 21:50.85 connor This one's painful. Ah, most people are shocked when they find out I'm not an electrician. 22:02.33 David Is that's it I Guess right? all right. 22:02.44 archpodnet So thank you? That's it. That's it that was great. Awesome! Thank you Connor as always because Trevor's just like I don't know what to do with these guys all right with that we are out. 22:09.99 connor Ah.