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Year of Ancient Ancestors Festival Programme

2nd April 2014

Thursday 15th May, 7pm – 9pm
Talk – The Pictish and Early Medieval Sculpture of Caithness in detail and in context.
FREE adult event Booking essential
Talk by John Borland, Measured Survey Manager, the Royal Commission on the Ancient and Historical Monuments of Scotland (RCAHMS).

Friday 16th May, 7pm - 11pm
Party Night – Medieval Mayhem!
£2 per adult Booking essential - limited places
Join us for a medieval party in Caithness Horizons. Historical cocktails and nibbles, photo booth, live music from Edinburgh based band - The Holy Ghosts, plus our very own Viking house band, ceramics workshop with Lorraine Robson (10 participants maximum, pre-booking for this activity essential), storytelling and much more!

Saturday 17th May, 11am – 1pm
Workshop – Pictish symbol stones, ceramic workshop with Lorraine Robson.
£2 per child FREE places for Peter’s Pals members 10 participants maximum
Booking essential
Join ceramicist Lorraine Robson for our children’s Pictish symbol stones ceramic workshop.

Saturday 17th May, 2.30pm – 4pm
Storytelling – Pictish and Viking tales with storyteller P.D. Brown.
FREE family event Booking essential
Join us for tales including the story of Dunnichen Moss, Maelbrighte Buck-Tooth and The Third Noble Retinue of the Island of Britain.

Saturday 17th May, 6pm – 8pm
Drama performance – Second Meeting of the Caithness Great Guild of Museologists.
FREE family event Booking essential
Join Caithness Horizons and Thurso Players for a very special night at the Museum. Help us imagine and recreate the lives of the people who carved the Museum’s early medieval sculptures. 

Sunday 18th May, 11.30am – 1pm
Film screening – Brave (PG).
FREE family event
Determined to make her own path in life, Princess Merida defies a custom that brings chaos to her kingdom. Granted one wish, Merida must rely on her bravery and her archery skills to undo a beastly curse.

Sunday 18th May, 1.30pm – 3.30pm
Workshop – Medieval manuscripts craft workshop with Joanne B. Kaar.
FREE children’s event Booking essential
Priority booking for Peter’s Pals members
Come along to our craft workshop with artist Joanne B. Kaar and learn about the links between medieval manuscripts and the Skinnet Stone. Then create your own 3D version of a letter from an illuminated manuscript which will be displayed at the Museum.

Sunday 18th May, 2pm – 4pm
Talk – The Picts and their images.
FREE adult event Booking essential
A talk by Dr Victoria Whitworth, Centre for Nordic Studies, UHI.

Saturday 5th July, 11.30am – 1pm
Storytelling – Pictish and Viking tales with storyteller and musician Bob Pegg.
FREE family event Booking essential
Join us for tales including Viking myths - featuring the mighty Thor, the beautiful Freya, and the wily Loki - as well as tales of the Picts.

Saturday 5th July to Sunday 13th July, 12noon – 4pm
Viking encampment – Living history activities with The Glasgow Vikings.
FREE family event
Come and see history brought alive by The Glasgow Vikings, historical re-enactment group. Come and explore the Viking encampment and the Viking ship.

Saturday 5th July 7pm – 8.30pm
Storytelling – Pictish and Viking tales with storyteller and musician Bob Pegg.
FREE adult event Booking essential
Join us for tales including Viking myths - featuring the mighty Thor, the beautiful Freya, and the wily Loki - as well as tales of the Picts.

Sunday 6th July, 2pm – 3.30pm
Storytelling – Viking myths and legends with storyteller and musician Bob Pegg.
FREE family event Booking essential
Join us for Viking myths and legends - featuring the mighty Thor, the beautiful Freya, and the wily Loki.

Monday 7th July, 11am – 1pm
Workshop – Viking shield making workshop with Helen Moore.
£2 per child FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Join local artist Helen Moore to look at the way in which Vikings would have defended themselves in battle and create your own Viking inspired shield to take home.

Monday 7th July, 2pm – 4pm
Workshop – Viking myths and legends storytelling and music workshop with Bob Pegg.
£2 per child FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Join us for stories and a music-making workshop based on Viking myths and legends. Join Bob and explore the Pictish harp, the Viking lyre and the Scandinavian shepherd's pipe and make your own miniature medieval storybook.

Tuesday 8th July, 2pm – 4pm
Workshop – Viking myths and legends storytelling and music workshop with Bob Pegg.
£2 per child FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Join us for stories and a music-making workshop based on Viking myths and legends. Join Bob and explore the Pictish harp, the Viking lyre and the Scandinavian shepherd's pipe and make your own miniature medieval storybook.

Wednesday 9th July, 11.30am – 1.30pm
Film screening – How to train your Dragon (PG).
FREE family event
A hapless young Viking who aspires to hunt dragons becomes the unlikely friend of a young dragon himself and learns there may be more to the creatures than he assumed.

Wednesday 9th July, 2pm – 4pm
Workshop – Dragon arts and crafts workshop with Helen Moore.
£2 per child FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Figureheads on Viking ships were meant to scare their enemies. Join local artist Helen Moore to learn about Viking “dragon” figureheads and make your own figurehead.

Thursday 10th July, 10am – 12noon
Workshop – Viking vessels, ceramic workshop with Lorraine Robson.
£2 per adult 10 participants’ maximum Booking essential
Join ceramicist Lorraine Robson for our ceramic workshop, looking at the coil pot building method that the Vikings would have used to produce their vessels.

Thursday 10th July, 2pm – 4pm
Workshop – Viking vessels, ceramic workshop with Lorraine Robson.
£2 per child 10 participants’ maximum FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Join ceramicist Lorraine Robson for our children’s ceramic workshop, looking at the coil pot building method that the Vikings would have used to produce their vessels.

Thursday 10th July, 5pm – 6.30pm
Film screening – Thor (12A).
Caithness Horizons FREE family event
The powerful but arrogant god Thor is cast out of Asgard to live amongst humans in Midgard (Earth), where he soon becomes one of their finest defenders.

Friday 11th July, 10am – 12noon
Workshop – Viking vessels, ceramic workshop with Lorraine Robson.
£2 per adult 10 participants’ maximum Booking essential
Join ceramicist Lorraine Robson for our ceramic workshop, looking at the coil pot building method that the Vikings would have used to produce their vessels.

Friday 11th July, 2pm – 4pm
Workshop – Viking vessels, ceramic workshop with Lorraine Robson.
£2 per child 10 participants’ maximum FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Join ceramicist Lorraine Robson for our children’s ceramic workshop, looking at the coil pot building method that the Vikings would have used to produce their vessels.

Friday 11th July, 6pm – 8pm
Exhibition opening – Official opening of our new Early Medieval Sculpture exhibition.
FREE - Invited guests only
Our new Early Medieval Sculpture exhibition which features Pictish symbol stones and rune inscribed stones from the Museum’s Collection will be officially opened on 11th July. The exhibition will open to the public from 10am on Saturday 12th July.

Friday 11th July, 7pm – 8.30pm
Storytelling – Viking myths and legends with storyteller P.D Brown.
FREE adult event Booking essential
Join us for tales including the story of The Waking of Angantyr, The Necklace Brisingamen and The Never-Ending Battle.

Saturday 12th July, 2pm – 3.30pm
Film screening – Thor: The Dark World (12A).
FREE family event
When Jane Foster is possessed by a great power, Thor must protect her from a new threat of old times - the Dark Elves.

Saturday 12th July, 5pm – 6.30pm
Viking fancy dress competition.
FREE family event (please see the Thurso Gala programme for more details)
This event is being run in collaboration with Thurso Town Improvements Association. Come along dressed in your best Viking costume and see if you can win a prize for the best Viking costume.

Sunday 13th July, 1pm – 3pm
Workshop – Viking arts and crafts with Helen Moore.
£2 per child FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Join us and local artist Helen Moore to discover more about Viking arts and crafts. Have a go at making a Viking badge and design a Viking inspired t-shirt.

Sunday 13th July, 3pm – 4pm
Best beard competition.
FREE family event
The moment all beard growers have been waiting for! Come along and show off your beard growing efforts to our panel of expert judges. Women and children with knitted, wooden, cotton wool or any other type of beard are also welcome! Come along and see if you can win a prize for the best beard.

Friday 3rd October to Sunday 5th October
Pictish Arts Society Annual Conference.
The Pictish Arts Society (PAS) was founded in 1988. It is the purpose of the PAS to raise public awareness of the Pictish stones, history and culture and to encourage various arts inspired by Pictish design. http://www.thepictishartssociety.org.uk/

Friday 24th October, 7pm – 10pm
Feast – Vetrablot Feast.
£20 per person Booking essential - limited places
Join staff from the Centre for Nordic Studies, UHI at the Vetrablot Feast. We invite you to eat like a Viking, try drinking from a horn, listen to stories and songs and play games as the Vikings would have done. There will be re-enactors and storyteller P.D Brown in character throughout the evening, who will take you out of this world and transport you back to the time when Caithness was part of the Viking Earldom of Orkney.

Saturday 25th October, 11.30am – 1.30pm
Workshop – Viking cooking and mini feast.
£2 per child FREE places for Peter’s Pals members Booking essential
Join us for a mini Viking feast! Learn all about what the Vikings ate and their cooking methods. Make and taste some Viking delicacies – if you dare!

Saturday 25th October, 2pm – 3.30pm
Stoytelling – Spooky Tales of the Vikings and the Picts with storyteller Bob Pegg.
FREE family event Booking essential
Come and join Bob Pegg for a special Viking and Pictish themed storytelling session especially for the Halloween season.

Saturday 25th October, 8pm – 9.30pm
Storytelling – Viking myths and legends with storyteller P.D. Brown.
FREE adult event Booking essential
As the dark half of the year is welcomed, the season of storytelling begins. Come and join P.D. Brown for three winter tales – The Legend of Nornagest, Skirnir's Journey and Helgi and Sigrun. 

For further information about the Year of Ancient Ancestors Festival visit the dedicated website: www.yearofancientancestors.co.uk/ or find us on Facebook and Twitter: www.facebook.com/thorsriver www.twitter.com/thorsriver

 

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