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Divers Suprised By Iron Age Port (UK)
The Guardian (UK) ^ | 9-17-2002 | Marv Kennedy

Posted on 09/17/2002 9:22:11 AM PDT by blam

Divers surprised by iron age port

Maev Kennedy, arts and heritage correspondent
Tuesday September 17, 2002
The Guardian

Archaeologists diving deep beneath the ferries and yachts criss-crossing Poole harbour have found startling evidence of the oldest working harbour in Britain, built centuries before the Roman invasion. Timber pilings excavated from a deep layer of silt on the sea bed have been radio-carbon dated at 250BC, the oldest substantial port structures by several centuries anywhere on the British coast.

They suggest an iron age trading complex, with massive stone and timber jetties reaching out into the deep water channel, providing berths for the largest ocean going ships - raising the possibility of Greek and Roman traders making the journey from the Mediterranean to the Dorset coast.

"We assumed that the timbers would come back with a Roman date. It was a jaw dropping moment when we got the results of the tests," said Tim Darvill of Bournemouth University, who is head of the Poole harbour heritage committee.

The scale of the construction work was astounding, and implied a large, skilled and organised workforce. Two jetties have been traced, one with a surviving length of 45 metres, but probably originally the same length as the other 80 metre jetty. The surface was eight metres across, and smooth paved with shaped flagstones. The jetties were built up from an estimated 10,000 tonnes of rock and rubble, reinforced with hundreds of oak tree trunks, sharpened at one end so they could be rammed into the sea bed.

Local fishermen, sailors, and amateur divers have been involved in the hunt, and the team have put out an appeal for any sailor enraged by running aground or snagging lines on an uncharted obstacle to contact them.

Archaeologists had assumed that the earliest port structures in Poole harbour - the largest natural sea inlet in Europe - were Roman.

The alluring possibility for the archaeologists is that some of the ships themselves may remain, sunk into the deep layer of silt and as well preserved as the jetty timbers. "I'm not asking for much, a nice Graeco-Roman trader complete with its cargo would satisfy me," Prof Darvill said.

The finds prove that the Roman invaders did not found the harbour, but came to a place they knew well through generations of trade. The merchants were probably exporting local pottery, metal work, and shale jewellery, for which the area was renowned, and importing luxury goods such as amber, finer ceramics, and clay jars of costly produce such as wine and oil.


TOPICS: News/Current Events
KEYWORDS: age; ancientnavigation; archaeology; barrycunliffe; britain; divers; ggg; godsgravesglyphs; history; iron; ironage; midnightsun; navigation; poole; port; pytheas; suprised; unitedkingdom
Those damn 'sea people' again? (Phoenecians?)
1 posted on 09/17/2002 9:22:11 AM PDT by blam
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To: blam

So, how did it taste after all those years?
2 posted on 09/17/2002 9:24:55 AM PDT by johniegrad
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To: blam
Cool! Hope they find such a Roman trade ship.
3 posted on 09/17/2002 9:26:06 AM PDT by Ciexyz
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To: johniegrad
More research for the next Edward Rutherford novel. I recommend his "London", a thousand page novel covering 2000 years of London's history from prehistoric times to the present (in the tradition of James Michener).
4 posted on 09/17/2002 9:30:47 AM PDT by Ciexyz
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To: LostTribe; RightWhale
Ping. (Post Dark Ages 'hotspot'?)
5 posted on 09/17/2002 9:31:25 AM PDT by blam
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To: blam
bump
6 posted on 09/17/2002 9:44:49 AM PDT by EggsAckley
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To: blam
It was Romans who adopted iron for their legions and thereby were able to cut enemy's weapons to shreds. Phoenicians traded no doubt with England, mainly in tin as far as metals are concerned. This port would have been Roman, and this may have been the limitless source of iron ore that Vergil refers to.
7 posted on 09/17/2002 9:51:38 AM PDT by RightWhale
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To: blam
There was a Greek guy named Pytheas who sailed from what is now Marseilles and supposedly reached Britain and possibly got as far as Iceland (Ultima Thule). But the book he wrote was lost and we only know about him from references by other writers.
8 posted on 09/17/2002 9:51:59 AM PDT by Tancred
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To: blam
, reinforced with hundreds of oak tree trunks, sharpened at one end so they could be rammed into the sea bed.

Rammed into the sea bed with what?

9 posted on 09/17/2002 10:19:23 AM PDT by Old Professer
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To: Old Professer
"Rammed into the sea bed with what?"

Pile drivers that either you or I could make with some pretty simple materials.(?)

10 posted on 09/17/2002 10:28:42 AM PDT by blam
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To: blam
>Timber pilings excavated from a deep layer of silt on the sea bed have been radio-carbon dated at 250BC

Confirms there was lots of sea traffic in that part of the world long before the time of Christ. Jesus uncle(?) Joseph of Arimethia was a big time shipper of tin from SW England. Probably based in Caesarea Maritima, the biggest baddest seaport in the region at that time. (Excellent web site!)

11 posted on 09/17/2002 10:53:16 AM PDT by LostTribe
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To: LostTribe
Thanks. Just bookmarked it.
12 posted on 09/17/2002 10:57:40 AM PDT by blam
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To: Old Professer
Rammed into the sea bed with what?

Actually, you can sink a post in a sea bed by running a common garden hose in under it and letting the pressure of the water shift the sand away so it will drop down into the bed. Possibly something similar was done.

13 posted on 09/17/2002 11:16:01 AM PDT by William Terrell
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To: William Terrell
>...running a common garden hose in under it and letting the pressure of the water shift the sand away so it will drop down into the bed.

Yep, that actually works. I've sunk long iron water pipes straight down that way, for use as electrical grounds. Just use an iron pipe to water hose adapter. Varies with soils. Your mileage may vary.

14 posted on 09/17/2002 11:29:06 AM PDT by LostTribe
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To: LostTribe
Beats posthole diggers all to hell. However, Alabama red clay is somewhat resistant.

15 posted on 09/17/2002 6:14:47 PM PDT by William Terrell
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To: William Terrell
>Alabama red clay is somewhat resistant.

No problem with rich midwest loam or mountain decomposed granite.

16 posted on 09/17/2002 7:58:19 PM PDT by LostTribe
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To: blam; FairOpinion; Ernest_at_the_Beach; SunkenCiv; 24Karet; 3AngelaD; 4ConservativeJustices; ...
Thanks Blam. Another one that slipped under the waves and never got added to GGG. Blast from the Past.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on, off, or alter the "Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list --
Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
The GGG Digest
-- Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)

17 posted on 03/13/2005 7:24:53 PM PST by SunkenCiv (last updated my FreeRepublic profile on Sunday, March 13, 2005.)
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Just updating the GGG information, not sending a general distribution.

To all -- please ping me to other topics which are appropriate for the GGG list. Thanks.
Please FREEPMAIL me if you want on or off the
"Gods, Graves, Glyphs" PING list or GGG weekly digest
-- Archaeology/Anthropology/Ancient Cultures/Artifacts/Antiquities, etc.
Gods, Graves, Glyphs (alpha order)

18 posted on 08/09/2006 10:37:35 PM PDT by SunkenCiv (updated my FR profile on Thursday, August 10, 2006. https://secure.freerepublic.com/donate/)
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19 posted on 02/08/2014 11:30:31 AM PST by SunkenCiv (http://www.freerepublic.com/~mestamachine/)
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