NHER 54880 (Find Spot record) - Multi-period finds, North Sea

This record details archaeologically significant material recovered during off-shore dredging within Aggregates Extraction Licence Area 254. These discoveries were reported to English Heritage/Historic England through the Marine Aggregate Industry Protocol for Reporting Finds of Archaeological Interest. See (S1) and (S2) for further details.

April 2006. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at UMA's Erith Wharf:
1 Palaeolithic mammoth tooth. Not closely datable. Mammoths occurred from the Wolstonian ice age (380,000 to 130,000 years ago) to the end of the Devensian ice age (c. 10,000 years ago).
See Discovery Report (S3) and reporting protocol annual report (S4) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 30 March 2016.

Pre 31 May 2006. Off-shore Dredging.
Found on board UMA's vessel City of Westminster:
1 ?prehistoric animal bone. Possible deer metatarsus. Not closely datable but potentially prehistoric.
See Discovery Report (S5) and reporting protocol annual report (S4) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 30 March 2016.

July 2006. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at UMA's Ridham Dock Wharf:
3 ?World War Two aircraft fragment. It has not been possible to identify the type of aircraft these fragments represent. Traces of black paint suggest they were from an aircraft that predominantly operated at night.
See Discovery Report (S6) and reporting protocol annual report (S4) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 30 March 2016.

January 2008. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at UMA's Greenwich Wharf:
1 post-medieval sub-oval wooden pulley. The pulley is 30cm long and 20cm wide with metal fittings on one end. The pulley is likely to be 19th century or earlier and may have come from a wreck within the vicinity.
See Discovery Report (S7) and reporting protocol annual report (S8) for further details.
S. Howard (NLA), 8 September 2010. Updated by J. Page (HES), 29 January 2014.

September-October 2009. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Ridham wharf:
Collection of post-medieval silver tableware comprising 2 goblet fragments (one bearing a crest), 3 hallmarked spoons, 2 burnt candle holders and 1 candle holder displaying classical-style faces. Also found was a twisted fragment that may represent either the base of a goblet or candlestick or some form of wall fixing and an unidentified bowl-shaped item similar to a candle snuffer. These objects are highly significant as they are potentially derived from a wreck.
The hallmarked spoons were assayed in 1781 and the crest on one of the goblet fragments has been identified as being the arms of John Dalrymple, 6th Earl of Stair (1749-1821). He was well travelled and although he was not lost at sea himself it is possible that this tableware was lost during his time as a diplomat between 1782 and 1787 - perhap when a ship carrying his possessions was wrecked.
Due to the significance of these finds a Temporary Exclusion Zone was established that covered the overlap of the areas dredged on the two days that these finds were retrieved. This has now been revised into a smaller exclusion zone based around a known anomaly identified during geophysical surveys
undertaken during earlier investigations into this licence area (in the north of the dredged area).
See reporting protocol annual report (S10) for further details. Discovery Reports awaited. This finds are also features in the Autumn 2010 issue of the scheme's newsletter (S27).
P. Watkins (HES), 16 November 2025.

July 2010. Off-shore Dredging.
Found on board the City of London:
1 medieval/post-medieval fragmentary iron anchor. Due to the poor condition of this object it is not possible to determine its type or date. It was most likely a small stocked anchor and therefore could date to any period from the Middle Ages to the 19th century. It possibly originated from a small fishing vessel.
See Discovery Report (S9) and reporting protocol annual report (S10) for further details.
J. Page (HES), 23 January 2014.

August 2010. Off-shore Dredging.
Found on board the City of Westminster:
1 post-medieval wrought iron ship fitting. This find is too damaged to be accurately identified, however it may have been used to support cables running the length of a vessel.
See Discovery Report (S11) and reporting protocol annual report (S12) for further details.
J. Page (HES), 23 January 2014.

June 2013. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Lafarge Tarmac's Ridham Wharf:
1 post-medieval/modern wrought iron ?anchor fluke. Possibly from a small stocked anchor.
See Discovery Report (S13) and reporting protocol annual report (S14) for further details.
Amended by P. Watkins (HES), 29 March 2016.

Pre 9 July 2013. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Lafarge Tarmac's Ridham Wharf:
1 ?Palaeolithic fossilised bone fragment. Probably part of the shaft of a much larger bone, potentially from prehistoric megafauna such as mammoth.
1 post-medieval/modern metal pin. Likely to have originated on a vessel.
1 modern metal spoon. Possibly early 20th century and therefore potentially a stray loss from a vessel.
See Discovery Reports (S15)-(S17) and reporting protocol annual report (S14) for further details.
J. Page (HES), 23 January 2014.

Pre 9 October 2013. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Lafarge Tarmac's Greenwich Wharf:
1 post-medieval cannon ball. The diameter would suggest a broad 17th- to 19th-century date. It is about the right size to have been fired from a 24-pounder gun, it is an isolated find so probably a warning or practice shot rather than one fired in battle.
See Discovery Report (S18) and reporting protocol annual report (S19) for further details.
J. Page (HES), 4 February 2014.

2016-2017 (exact date unknown at present). Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Greenwich Wharf:
1 modern metal pulley block.
See reporting protocol annual report (S25) for further details. Discovery report awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 16 November 2025.

Pre 17 April 2018. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Greenwich Wharf:
1 modern cast iron mooring bollard. Probably once fixed on a boat. Maker's stamp towards base with raised letters 'WW'.
See Discovery Report (S20) and reporting protocol annual report (S21) for further details.
P. Watkins (HES), 22 May 2018.

Pre 11 November 2020. Off-shore Dredging.
Found on board Tarmac's City of London vessel:
1 modern flag fragment. Top left corner of a larger white ensign flag. Believed to be relatively modern.
See Discovery Report (S22) and reporting protocol annual report (S26) for further details. This flag was featured in the Spring 2021 issue of the protocol's newsletter (S28).
P. Watkins (HES), 29 December 2020.

Pre 29 March 2021. Off-shore Dredging.
Found on board Tarmac's City of London vessel:
1 modern engine fragment. Fragment identified as being from a Rolls-Royce Avon engine, which powered a range of military aircraft produced between 1950 and 1974. It was though not necessarily from a military aircraft as an industrial variant was also produced, which is still available today.
See Discovery Report (S23) and reporting protocol annual report (S26) for further details. This engine fragment was featured in the Autumn 2021 issue of the scheme's newsletter (S29).
P. Watkins (HES), 13 November 2025.

Pre 5 November 2024. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Tilbury Wharf:
1 post-medieval cast iron cannon ball. Probably associated with a battle fought during the Anglo-Dutch Wars.
See Discovery Report (S24) for further details. Associated annual report awaited. This cannon ball was featured in the Spring 2025 issue of the protocol's newsletter (S30).
P. Watkins (HES), 13 November 2025.

Pre 17 June 2025. Off-shore Dredging.
Found at Tilbury Wharf:
1 modern wooden handle.
See Discovery Report (S25) for further details. Associated annual report awaited.
P. Watkins (HES), 13 November 2025.