Another in the series on the history of London up to the time of the Great Fire of 1666, largely taken from my book, “The Flower Of All Cities” (Amberley, 2019) …

Archaeological Finds

A series of Museum of London and other publications either describe in detail or summarise the findings of archaeological excavations at various Medieval sites around the City.

There are also a couple of recent popular books on the subject, “London in Fragments” by Ted Sandling, and “Mudlarking” by Lara Maiklem.

The more important archaeological finds  from Medieval London are on exhibition in the City’s principal museums, including the Museum of London, which houses an extensive collection. 

The commonest Medieval  finds on the foreshore of the Thames are sherds of – glazed or unglazed – pottery, fragments of  tile, coins and jetons, or trading tokens, and pins. 

Typical early Medieval  pottery  finds include  locally manufactured “London-Type Ware”; late Medieval ones, “Surrey White Ware” and “Mill Green Ware” (from Essex). 

Roofing tiles  are sometimes  found with  large rounded holes for  wooden pegs.

Please note that the removal of any finds from the foreshore is now only allowed under licence from  the Port of London Authority.