Kirbuster Farm Museum to host a heritage food open day

Orkney Islands Council is delighted to invite the public to a special open day at Kirbuster Farm Museum on Saturday 11 July, 11am to 4pm, celebrating ‘Sooans’, a traditional heritage food made from oats that was once a dietary staple in Orkney homes.

The event is being held in partnership with the Sowens Solutions project, led by the University of the Highlands and Islands Archaeology Institute alongside the University of Copenhagen and the James Hutton Institute, and funded by the Novo Nordisk Foundation.

Visitors will be taken on a journey from oat sheaf to sowen scone. Activities on the day include trying the hand quern, observing the steeping process, sieving husks from fermenting oat liquid, and handling items from the museum store used traditionally in sowens-making. Researcher Christopher Gee will demonstrate baking sowen scones on the griddle over the fire, and ready-baked scones prepared at Orkney College will be available to taste.

Kirbuster Farm Museum, located in Birsay on Orkney's West Mainland, is the last un-restored example of a traditional firehoose in Northern Europe. The oldest part of the museum, the firehoose, dates back to at least 1595, and the Argo family donated the property to Orkney Islands Council, who opened it as a museum in 1987. With its central hearth and peat fire, it provides a uniquely fitting setting for a day celebrating traditional Orcadian food heritage.

Neil Leask, Visitor Services Officer, Kirbuster Farm Museum, said:

“It's great to have days like this at Kirbuster. Sowens were such a staple of Orkney life for generations, and it's a real pleasure to share that history with visitors. We hope everyone who comes along has a grand time.”

Researchers Christopher Gee and Raggie Ljosland are keen to hear from anyone with memories of sowens and can be contacted at christopher.gee@uhi.ac.uk. Further background on the Sowens Solutions project can be found in the UHI Orkney press release.

The open day is free to attend and suitable for all the family. Kirbuster Farm Museum is open from March to October with free admission and donations welcome.

The museum is located on Hundland Road, Birsay, and can be reached by calling 01856 771268.