Woodworking Workshop: Hewing

Discover traditional woodworking and experience the ancient skill of hewing – the art of shaping raw logs into usable timber with an axe at Avalon Archaeology. This immersive workshop invites you to connect with the tools, techniques, and traditions that built the homes and halls of the Viking and Anglo-Saxons. Your work will contribute to a living heritage project that transforms trees into a standing timber frame building.

What You’ll Learn

Spend the day immersed in hands-on techniques:

• Identifying different types of wood
• Marking logs with chalk lines
• Exploring Viking and Anglo-Saxon axes and their uses
• Producing timber for use in a timber framing project

This is a physical workshop, with the goal of preparing timber that will later form part of a complete timber frame.

Meet the Tutors

This course will be ran by Marc Cox of Newhaven Coppice Ltd., Tom Gallon of Bourne Valley Timber Frames and David Wilson of High Elms Timberworks. All three have worked on a huge variety of projects across the UK and Europe; both independently and as part of the Carpenters Fellowship and Charpentiers Sans Frontiers.

Practical Information

• No prior experience required
• A general level of fitness is recommended due to the physical nature of the activity
• Tea, coffee, and refreshments provided
• Optional follow-up 2-day workshop: turn your hewed timber into a frame for a building

Part of Woodworking Week

This workshop is part of a week-long celebration of woodworking traditions at Avalon Archaeology. Over the course of the week, a small team will construct a complete timber frame building from raw logs. Join us for hands-on, woodworking workshops and family open days dedicated to the tree-wrights, carpenters, and timber framers of the past.