The Thame Pot
Welcome to the first way marker of ‘The Peculiar Pot’ – a story trail for Thame.
This trail was funding through Public Art Funding, and installed in 2023. Find out more about the project through this link.
To get the most out of the trail, listen to the first part of the story:
Why a badger?
Did you know that many years ago a badger unearthed part of an Iron Age pot on the Thame Meadows housing estate – where this way marker is situated.
Why a pot?
During community engagement that took place to develop this Public Art Trail, this pot caught the imagination of the residents involved in workshops, and became the magical item that transported the child in the story to different times in Thame’s past. The name ‘The Peculiar Pot’ was chosen by Emilee Sinclair, a pupil at St Joseph’s Roman Catholic School.
What happened to the real pot?
The discovery of the pot was duly recorded, leading to an archaeological survey before housebuilding began. The survey of the land beneath the housing estate revealed that Thame has a rich prehistoric past, going back around six thousand years. The most significant find was an unexpected early Neolithic causewayed enclosure, and a big one at that. It dates from nearly six thousand years ago, to the time when farming was just beginning in Britain. The site had much more to give, revealing a lot of evidence from not just the Neolithic but the Iron Age, the Roman period and the early Anglo Saxon period. Recorded by the archaeologists, before the houses were built, were a Neolithic enclosure (initially thought to be a henge), Iron Age round houses and drove-way, an extensive Roman agricultural settlement, and Anglo Saxon sunken featured buildings. Later in 2023 an exhibition at Thame Museum will reveal some of the finds from the excavation of just 1/4 of the full causewayed enclosure.
Find out more about Thame’s history through our summary page here, visit Thame Museum, or for a more in-depth look at Thame’s history, you may want to consider joining Thame Historical Society.
Who is the child?
The child can be anyone – the child can be you! Enjoy the fun and magical story and be transported to different times in Thame’s history, and possible future. We hope you learn something about the town you didn’t already know, as well as enjoy a gentle stroll into town.
Challenge Questions:
Listen to the story:
- What did the child put into the pot?
Look at the Way marker
- What word beginning with ‘W’ can you find on the back of the way marker?
CONTINUE THE TRAIL:
- To find the next way marker, walk out of the park onto Roman Way.
- Carefully cross the road to Drovers Crescent and walk along it to join the footpath at the end. Turn right and walk up the hill to where the footpath meets Weavers Branch.
- Carefully cross the road, and pick up the footpath that starts to the left of No 14, diagonally across the road to the right. Walk along this footpath to find the 2nd way marker