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bs_bs_banner The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology (2013) 42.1: 137–149 doi: 10.1111/j.1095-9270.2012.00364.x A Late-18th-Century Merchantman Wrecked in the South Edinburgh Channel, Thames Estuary, England David Parham and Elizabeth Rundell School of Applied Science, Bournemouth University, Talbot Campus, Fern Barrow, Poole BH12 5BB, England Pieter van der Merwe National Maritime Museum, Royal Museums Greenwich, London SE10 9NF, England The South Edinburgh Channel wreck consists of the remains of a large, unidentified armed merchant ship whose cargo included a rare consignment of Swedish plate-money, among other goods. The wreck was lost some time in the later part of the 18th century in the Thames Estuary and was uncovered briefly by natural means between 1972 and 1977. This allowed archaeological investigation, which was undertaken in very poor environmental conditions in the early days of maritime archaeology in the UK. © 2012 The Authors Key words: post-medieval, Sweden, London, East Indies, plate-money, Long Sand. he North Shingles Bank in the Thames Estuary, credit, invited the National Maritime Museum to send seen here in Stanier’s 1789 chart of the Thames an observer to assist in their initial diving investigation. T Estuary (Fig. 1), was first accurately surveyed by Beaufort as part of a grand survey of the coastal waters of the British Isles during his appointment as History of site investigations Hydrographer of the Navy between 1829 and 1855 This initial assessment was undertaken on 19–21 May (Courtney, 2002: 212). Subsequent surveys have shown 1975 using between two and four PLA divers in the that since this date the bank has been gradually retreat- presence of a representative from the National Mari- ing on its northern and eastern flanks. Between autumn time Museum (NMM), Pieter van der Merwe, who 1969 and spring 1974 the bank retreated some 400 m briefed the divers to look for certain constructional westwards, thereby extending the width of the adjacent and archaeological features and recorded their post- South Edinburgh Channel. In response to this the Port dive comments. The divers were deployed along a of London Authority (PLA) undertook a number of single jackstay in underwater visibility of less than surveys of the channel and in the autumn of 1972 300 mm. A number of finds were recovered and the located an obstruction 40 m long and standing 2.5 m divers reported that the obstruction was a large, par- proud of the sea-bed in 11 m of water (at Low Water tially intact wreck of an armed wooden sailing vessel, Neaps), emerging from the eastern side of the bank, which exceeded 20 m in length. On 20 May no diving 50–100 m to the west of the shipping channel (Fig. 2). was undertaken, but soundings were taken around the It was estimated that if the regression of the bank site. continued at the same rate the obstruction would have The results showed that the wreck and its cargo were become a hazard to the safe navigation of the channel of archaeological interest, but there was insufficient by 1977. The PLA is duty-bound to ensure safe navi- evidence to support an application for designation gation of the channel and therefore, before it became a under the Protection of Wrecks Act. The PLA had to hazard, the obstruction would have to be removed. An ensure safe navigation through the channel by 1977, assessment of the obstruction was urgently required in and it was considered that designation of the wreck order to decide how best to deal with it. As the area might lead to difficulties. The PLA decided that they from which the obstruction was emerging had been a would keep the NMM advised of their plans for the drying shoal for at least 150 years, the PLA considered wreck and that the two bodies would devise a method that it might well have some historic value and, to its of approaching the wreck in the best interests of both © 2012 The Authors. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology © 2012 The Nautical Archaeology Society. Published by Blackwell Publishing Ltd. 9600 Garsington Road, Oxford OX4 2DQ, UK and 350 Main Street, Malden, MA 02148, USA. NAUTICAL ARCHAEOLOGY, 42.1 Figure 1. Plan of the Thames Estuary by Richard Stanier, 1790 (G218:8/1). (National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, UK) archaeology and safe navigation (Minutes of meeting of her cargo (Minutes of meeting at NMM, 5 held at NMM, 28 May 1975). September 1975). Further investigations were undertaken on 4 June by On 30–31 October 1975 the PLA undertook initial a team of four PLA divers (including two from the clearance work on the site under the archaeological May team) plus David Lyon of the NMM. On this supervision of David Lyon of the NMM, who dived on occasion underwater visibility was excellent, in excess the site but was unable to undertake any recording of 18 m. The wreck was less intact than originally work owing to zero visibility (a complete black-out thought, but there was much surviving structure and where you have no perception of vision at all). The the cargo was substantially intact, despite there being PLA divers attempted to locate the two vertical posts some dispersal of artefacts at the edges of the site. All at the highest point of the wreck. Only one was found; the divers’ observations were compiled in a sketch the second was assumed to have collapsed, but was survey of the wreck, which was further enhanced with seen on later dives. A section of wreck timbers and the data from all the site investigations undertaken. This 2.4-m-long vertical post located (between the copper forms the basis of the description and site-plan (Fig. 3). pile and the anchors) were recovered to the deck of the In the light of this enhanced knowledge, and using PLA salvage vessel Crossness. The section consisted of contemporary values, it was decided that the wreck two frames (one 3.4 m and the other 2.45 m long) was not worthy of designation or large-scale excava- attached to a 5.66-m-long inboard strake. These struc- tion, as much was already known about ships of this tural elements were recorded and a section from the period. However, as the interests of navigation end of the larger frame (including a well-preserved required the removal of a substantial portion of the rebate) and the top 100 mm of the vertical post (includ- site, it was considered that a rescue investigation was ing the tenon) were sawn off and retained (both are warranted. This was to be funded by the NMM and now lost). The remainder of the material recovered was undertaken jointly by the NMM and the St Andrews then discarded. Institute of Maritime Archaeology (later the Scottish The two-week joint NMM/Institute of Maritime Institute of Maritime Studies), and would involve the Archaeology field-season was undertaken between 23 conservation and monitoring of those items already March and 6 April 1976, the team consisting of Pieter recovered, monitoring work undertaken by the PLA van der Merwe and David Lyon from the NMM, and on the site and a two-week archaeological project to Colin Martin, Keith Muckelroy, Paula Williams record the wreck and recover a representative sample and Tony Long from St Andrews. The Royal Navy 138 © 2012 The Authors. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology © 2012 The Nautical Archaeology Society D. PARHAM ET AL.: LATE-18TH-CENTURY MERCHANTMAN WRECK IN THE THAMES ESTUARY The South Edinburgh Channel wreck was the 13th wreck to be designated as a Historic Wreck under the Protection of Wrecks Act 1973, on 27 May 1977 under order 1977 No1:1977/764. The protected area is a circle of 100 m radius centred on position 5131.73’, 01 14.88’E within the South Edinburgh Channel of the Thames Estuary, 10 miles north of the town of Margate in Kent (Fig. 2). Following completion of the 1976 season, eastward movement of the North Shingles Bank covered the site once more, and the PLA abandoned plans for any future clearance. Inspections by the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU) in 1988, 1995, 1997 and 1999 (ADU, 1988, 1995, 1997 and 1999) and Wessex Archaeology in 2009 (Wessex Archaeology, 2010) con- firmed the position of the site by magnetometer survey. Soundings were taken of the depth of water and hence the depth of sand over the site. These visits have con- firmed that no part of the site is visible above the sea-bed, and that the depth of sand over the wreck has gradually increased from 2 m in 1988, and 3 m in 1995, to 6 m in 1999, 5 m higher than it was during the investigations in the 1970s. A magnetometer survey conducted by the ADU in 1999 suggests that the site lies 50 m north-east of the centre of the designated area at 51°31.775N 001°14.79E (WGS 84). In 2009 Wessex Archaeology conducted a geophysical survey which revealed a high- Figure 2. Location map (contains Ordnance Survey data, © amplitude magnetometer anomaly of 1768nT, ‘likely Crown copyright and database right 2012); inset detail from to represent the remains of the wreck’ (Wessex Archae- Admiralty chart. (© Crown Copyright/SeaZone Solutions ology, 2010: 20), but no sea-bed surface wreckage was Ltd 2012. All Rights Reserved. Not to be Used for seen on a sidescan survey conducted at the same time, Navigation) suggesting that the wreck was still buried. This was confirmed by a parametric sonar survey, which supplied a boom-defence vessel (MFV 1256) and crew revealed 5–6 m of thick, sandy deposit on top of a to act as a diving support vessel.

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