Our museum includes a demonstration Anglo-Saxon farm which we call Gyrwe, pronounced Jeer-Way which in Old English, means Marsh-Dwellers, and from which we get the modern “Jarrow”). Gyrwe shows how the landscape of an agricultural estate, essential to produce food and rent income to the monastery, possibly could have looked at Bede’s time. The project started in the 1990s and is still ongoing!

In the northern area of our farm, beyond the animals’ fields, we have a selection of (re)constructed Anglo-Saxon buildings, all based on archaeological sites in Northumbria. These are; our Thirlings Hall (Building A, Thirlings), Grubenhaus (New Bewick) and Monk’s Cell (Building VIII, Hartlepool). Currently, we are doing work on the reinterpreted Yeavering Grandstand, built here as an earthwork but which originally would have been a free-standing wooden structure.

Jarrow Hall is a member of EXARC (www.exarc.net), the international network dedicated to ancient technology, experimental archaeology, interpretation/education and museum practice and as such is actively involved in experimental research, hosting both external projects such as the Experimental Archaeology Newcastle Research group at Newcastle University (EXARN) and internal projects carried out with our extraordinary volunteers.

Our Anglo-Saxon Village is a great location for a film set and has featured in several film, TV and music video productions due to it’s ease of access, location, facilities and of course, our unique Anglo-Saxon Farm Village setting. The museum farm and village is available for private hire to re-enactment groups, schools and other interested parties. Please get in touch to discuss your needs and we will do our best to meet your requirements.