Step back in time to the medieval world in Cirencester this summer
Cotswold residents and visitors are invited to journey back in time this summer at Cirencester’s Corinium Museum, where medieval re-enactors will bring the Festival of Archaeology to life.
Running from 18 July to 2 August, the event is part of a national initiative led by the Council for British Archaeology. This year’s theme, Archaeology and Nature, will be experienced through hands-on exploration of natural fibres, stonemasonry, medieval diet and seasonings, and early medicine.
A highlight of the programme will be The Company of Blood and Gold medieval re-enactment group, who will visit the museum on 25 July to showcase what life was like in the 14th and 15th centuries. Visitors can discover everything from the mysteries of witch marks to the realities of medieval battlefield medicine, including how surgeons might have removed an arrow from a patient’s skull.
Other highlights from the festival include:
- An interactive workshop to open the festival on 18 July, led by children’s author S. J. Poyton, inspired by her book Mammoth Rider. Combining storytelling with fascinating insights into mammoths, cloning and de-extinction, the session encourages young people to explore how science, technology and imagination can shape the future.
- The chance for visitors to enjoy a variety of themed activities throughout the festival including children’s craft workshops, guided walks exploring Roman and medieval Cirencester, a behind-the-scenes tour of the museum’s reserve collection at Northleach, and an afternoon talk examining the impact of Time Team excavations in the Cotswolds.
- A special partnership event, Salmonsbury Moot, celebrating the landscape, wildlife and history of Greystones Farm Nature Reserve in Bourton-on-the-Water.
Caroline Morris, Collections and Education Manager at Corinium Museum, said: “We’re so pleased with the range of activities we have for this year’s Festival of Archaeology. We have almost 1,500 years covered in a fortnight – from medieval re-enactors in the museum to an Iron Age engagement day in Bourton-on-the-Water, and I hope lots of people get to enjoy this wide range of our Cotswold history.”
Full details of all Festival of Archaeology events at Corinium Museum can be found at:
www.coriniummuseum.org
Contact Information
Cotswold District Council Communications Team
Notes to editors
About Corinium Museum
Corinium Museum is located at the heart of Cirencester, the ‘Capital of the Cotswolds’. The principal collection consists of the highly significant finds from the Roman town of Corinium. However, the museum today is much more than that, taking you on a journey through time and charting the development of the Cotswolds from its prehistoric landscape to the modern-day.
About the Council for British Archaeology
The Council for British Archaeology is a leading educational charity dedicated to championing and promoting engagement in archaeology and supporting grassroots archaeologists across the UK. It was established in 1944 and has a long history of championing public participation in archaeology, aiming to connect diverse communities with the heritage of the past.
Homepage Council for British Archaeology
About The Company of Blood and Gold
The Company of Blood and Gold is a small Burgundian retinue, a company out of time, journeying from the rich courts and fields of 15th century Burgundy to the tumultuous battlefields and bustling towns of the Wars of the Roses.
Our purpose is threefold:
- To inform on the crucial role of Burgundy and continental Europe in the conflict known as the Wars of the Roses
- To educate on the realities of 15th century life, from the clangour of the battlefield to the craft of the artisan and the rhythm of daily existence
- To entertain with the pageantry, skill and vibrant humanity of the Late Middle Ages, ensuring the past is not merely remembered, but vividly experienced.
The Company of Blood And Gold - A 15th Century Burgundian Retinue
Freedom Leisure runs the Corinium Museum facility on behalf of Cotswold District Council.
About Freedom Leisure
Freedom Leisure is one of the largest charitable and not-for-profit leisure trusts in the UK managing over 100 leisure and cultural facilities on behalf of partners across England and Wales. We are proud to be delivering high quality, value for money locally-focused leisure services that are sustainable and accessible to all and we are committed to their ongoing development. As a not-for-profit organisation all surpluses are reinvested in support of the objectives we share with our partners.
Improving lives through leisure
- Enabling communities to be more active more often, making the most of their leisure time
- To be a fun and rewarding place for our colleagues to work
- To support our partners with the provision of great community facilities
For all media enquiries please contact:
Samantha Fryer Ward [email protected] on 01285 655611