Workshop: Butcher
Build the workshop of the butcher as it stood in different cultures: a Dutch gabled house with a stall shutter, a German half-timbered house, an Italian bottega, a shop in the souk, a Roman taberna, a Japanese machiya, a Chinese shophouse, a log cabin from the north or a mud-brick workshop from ancient Egypt. The workshop gets the workstations of the craft: smoker, chopping block, chest, barrels and chains for hanging meat. At the bottom you can read how everything is calculated.
Point at a block for the explanation. Click a block to mark it as placed. The side view shows the section at the chosen column, Layer shows the chosen layer from above.
Build plan
Per layer
| Layer | Parts | Blocks |
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A number is the count of blocks of that part in that layer, in the colour of the part. Click a layer to see it from above.
Build tips
- Put crafts together as they were: in a town, smiths, bakers and weavers often had their own street. Think of Smith Lane or Tanners’ Row.
- Every villager profession in Minecraft has its own workstation. A building with the right workstations does double duty when villagers live in it.
3D and layer-by-layer build plan
To Minecraft
Download the workshop as a schematic file and paste it with WorldEdit, or build it with a hologram in Litematica.
How it is calculated
History and fun facts
The craft: Butcher
Butchers often worked together in a street of their own or at a meat hall, so the town could watch over smell, waste and freshness. The Shambles in York takes its name from the Old English ‘fleshammels’, the benches on which meat was laid out. The upper floors jut out, which kept the meat in the shade.
Why crafts sat together
In medieval Europe craftsmen organised themselves in guilds from the eleventh and twelfth centuries. A guild watched over quality, prices and training: you started as an apprentice, became a journeyman and could only become a master after making a masterpiece.
That is why crafts often sat together. In many towns street names still remember it: Smith Street, Tanners’ Row, Baker Street. Customers knew where to go, and the town council could easily keep watch over fire and waste.
Did you know?
- In many medieval towns a butcher was not allowed to throw his waste into the canal and had to take it to a fixed place.
- The Shambles in York is one of the best preserved medieval streets in Europe.
Sources and further reading
Read more about the history here. The links go to museums, archives and heritage organisations outside this site.
- Historic Centre of Florence (opens in a new tab) UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Description of the historic centre of Florence, with the Ponte Vecchio. - Medina of Fez (opens in a new tab) UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Description of the old city of Fez with its souks and craft quarters. - Archaeological Areas of Pompei, Herculaneum and Torre Annunziata (opens in a new tab) UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Description of the excavated towns, with shops, bakeries and workshops. - Historic Monuments of Ancient Kyoto (opens in a new tab) UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Description of ancient Kyoto, the city of the machiya and the weavers. - Ancient Thebes with its Necropolis (opens in a new tab) UNESCO World Heritage Centre
Description of Thebes with its necropolis, where the village of Deir el-Medina belongs. - Royal Delft (opens in a new tab) Royal Delft
The pottery of 1653 in Delft, with its history and tours. - Lavenham Guildhall (opens in a new tab) National Trust
The sixteenth-century guildhall in Lavenham, with an explanation of the wool trade. - JORVIK Viking Centre (opens in a new tab) JORVIK Viking Centre
The museum on the excavation site in Coppergate, York, with Viking workshops. - Guild (opens in a new tab) Encyclopaedia Britannica
An explanation of guilds: how they arose, what they regulated and when they disappeared.
About this tool
With this planner you build the workshop of the butcher in Minecraft, in the style of the culture you choose. The buildings are based on real building types: a Dutch gabled house with a stall shutter, a German half-timbered house, an Italian bottega, a shop in the souk, a Roman taberna, a Japanese machiya, a Chinese shophouse, a log cabin from the north or a mud-brick workshop from ancient Egypt.
The building gets the right workstations: smoker, chopping block, chest, barrels and chains for hanging meat. You see the build plan layer by layer, a 3D preview and the block list, and you can download the workshop as a schematic for WorldEdit or Litematica. Want several crafts side by side? See Crafts and workshops.
Frequently asked questions
How do I build a butcher workshop in Minecraft?
Choose a culture, for example the Dutch gabled house or the log cabin, and adjust width, depth and storeys. The tool puts the workstations of the craft in the building: smoker, chopping block, chest, barrels and chains for hanging meat. Build the walls and roof first, then place the workstations from the build plan. Download the result as a schematic if you want to paste it with WorldEdit.
Which cultures can I choose for a butcher?
Nine: Dutch gabled house, German half-timbering, Italian bottega, souk, Roman taberna, Japanese machiya, Chinese shophouse, log cabin from the north and Egyptian mud-brick house. Each culture has its own walls, roofs and shopfronts, and you can still change everything. The example list has real places and customs, such as the Ponte Vecchio, the Kerameikos and the Shambles.