Recent Finds

In archaeology, individual finds are valuable, but it’s often the bigger picture that tells the real story. Assemblages, or groups of objects found together, can reveal patterns of behaviour, trade, and chronology in ways that isolated finds simply can’t. Too often, limited sampling or tight excavation windows mean specialists don’t get the volume of material needed for meaningful analysis. But when we do have the chance to excavate large assemblages, especially of pottery, the payoff can be huge.

Large ceramic assemblages are crucial for refining chronological frameworks in British archaeology. Pottery styles evolve rapidly and vary regionally, making them sensitive indicators of time and cultural change. Analysing form, fabric, and decoration across stratified contexts allows us to build precise dating sequences and trace shifts in occupation, identity, and social practice.

This approach is central to regional research agendas, like those set out in the East of England and South West Archaeological Research Frameworks, which emphasise the importance of ceramic studies in understanding settlement patterns, trade networks, and social transformations. Large assemblages also allow for statistical analysis and comparison across sites, strengthening regional chronologies and contributing to broader narratives of historical development.

Our long-running excavations in Milton Keynes offer compelling evidence for the value of an assemblage-based approach. Prehistoric pottery specialist Lawrence (pictured here with finds supervisor Emily and project officer Jenn) is now nearing the end of an epic cataloguing effort from an unusual site spanning 12 hectares. This site was established in the mid-1st century BC and spans the late Iron Age with all activity ceasing by around AD70. With over 72,000 pottery sherds, weighing approximately 1.1 metric tonnes, this is starting to look like a very significant assemblage with a fascinating story to tell – watch this space!

This large conch shell was recently found in a 19th- or early 20th-century deposit at a site in Shadwell, E1W. It’s been identified as a Giant Spider Conch (Lambis truncata truncata), a subspecies found in the tropical and subtropical Indian Ocean. At 34cm long, this specimen is close to the species’ maximum size of around 40cm.

Large exotic shells like this have been collected for centuries, valued as souvenirs and decorative items. In Victorian Britain, there was a particular enthusiasm for shell collecting, then known as conchology, which became a fashionable hobby and decorative trend. Some collections were modest, others extravagant, including the shell grottoes found in the gardens of country houses and seaside resorts. While many used locally sourced shells, the growing reach of empire and trade networks meant exotic specimens became increasingly accessible by the 19th century.

The location of the find, close to the East End docks, suggests a few possibilities. It could have been a memento from a sailor, or part of a domestic collection. Charles Jamrach, a well-known dealer in exotic animals and curiosities, ran a shop on nearby St George Street (now The Highway). Alongside live creatures, he sold shells and other natural specimens to satisfy Victorian tastes for the exotic.

This week’s #FindsFriday is a Mesolithic tranchet axe from a site near Chichester.

Tranchet axes were essential tools in the Mesolithic, used for woodworking and other daily tasks. This one was found in a pit beside four parallel curvilinear features dating to the Early Bronze Age. 

The site revealed evidence of thousands of years of activity, with features from the Neolithic through to the Roman period. Among the Early Iron Age remains were structures, a large posthole and ditch enclosure, and a well. A landscape shaped and reshaped over time, with this axe as a small trace of its earliest inhabitants.

Here’s Timothy, from the team working at the Tower of London, with a medieval gunstone – what a place to find one!

This roughly shaped stone projectile was probably destined for a cannon, but since bore sizes varied, it would have been finished to fit the chosen gun. Gunstones were a vital part of medieval warfare, and finding one within the walls of one of the world’s most famous fortresses provides a compelling glimpse into its defensive past.

For this week’s #FindsFriday we have two fantastic coins of Cunobelin, dating to around AD 8-41.

The gold coin is a Cunobelinus Wild type quarter stater, depicting an ear of corn on one side and a horse on the other. Gold’s resistance to corrosion has helped preserve it, despite 2,000 years underground. The bronze coin is a Cunobelinus Centaur type unit, with a Romanised bust on one side and a centaur blowing a horn on the reverse. Its incredible state of preservation is thanks to its recovery from a waterlogged deposit—an anaerobic environment at the base of a watering hole. Most bronze coins from this site in Buckinghamshire show some corrosion, so finding one like this is a rare treat!

This week’s #FindsFriday is an unfinished Neolithic axe from Suffolk, known as a preform. There’s an issue with its butt end (the top part) which meant that, despite being nearly complete, it couldn’t be finished.

Fascinatingly, the face in the right-hand image shows around three undeveloped points of percussion from being struck hard. It’s tempting to imagine the knapper, realising the flaw, took a few frustrated whacks at it!