Rope tobacco, four hundred years old. Still pungent. Jesus’ arm and heart from the Italian Holy Face of Lucca pilgrimage badge, that was carried across medieval Europe to reach London. A silver heart, cut in two from a pirate coin, made to share with a lover. A trade bead, so precious it was exchanged for the life of one man. Just some of the treasures packed into my car right now. Tomorrow I am in excellent company displaying some incredible Thames finds with 28 amazing mudlarks at the Henfield museum, nr Brighton. Do come!
Rove on down to Watermens Hall today, 10-4pm to see some of my choicest pirate treasures from the great River Thames. I’m joined by all me hearties, each one with a display to shiver your timbers! 10 St Mary at Hill Be there, or walk the plank!
A few weeks ago, my daughter gave me an advanced copy of a book she picked up at work, saying ‘Mum, I think you might like this…’ Sure enough she was right. Pals Ellie and Lucie have written an absolutely blinder of a book about falling in love with the hobby of metal detecting, and how a part-time passion can take over your life. Yesterday was the big launch, in a field in Essex, with a motley crowd of metal detectorists, mudlarks, publishers and the good folk from Minelab. We were all treated to a fabulous day, all equipment generously provided, detecting and milling with lovely people in glorious English countryside. Bravo, girls, you did so good! #lostandfound #minelab #metaldetecting
This rare triangular padlock was made in Germany, in the 1500-1600s. I found it recently across the River from the Stalhof, aka the Hanseatic Steelyard. This walled compound was granted Royal permission in the 1300s, and formed a riverside Kontor, (trading base) for Germans, allowing them to deal with Londoners directly from their own dockside warehouses. They imported timber, fur, wax, grains, and exported wool and cloth. I suspect a good few early Bartmann bottles come through their dock too. Valuable goods needed protection, so they imported good quality locks too! But the Stalhof lost favour with Queen Elizabeth I in 1598 and was shut down. Triangular padlocks are rarely found in London so I suspect those that appear on the Thames came from the Steelyard, and pre-date its closure. They continued to be made till the 1700s in Germany. Also shown are two other early padlocks I have found, a barrel and a half-heart padlock, and various keys A huge thank you to Graham duHeaume for a gorgeous job restoring these padlocks. And also to Frank Mnich, who has made me my very own trader’s token, with this triangular padlock as my symbol. Thank you Frank, so much. I am deeply touched by your kind gift. @frank_finds #triangularpadlock #stalhof #barrelpadlock #half-heartpadlock #mudlark
EXHIBITION & EVENTS: Our next Mudlarking Exhibition takes place from 10am - 4pm on Saturday 28th and Sunday 29th March at historic Watermen’s Hall, home of the Worshipful Company of Watermen and Lightermen. Come to meet over thirty exhibiting mudlarks, and see thousands of incredible mudlark-found artefacts. We also have some exciting activities planned…
Mudlark and author JR Carpenter will be reading Thames-themed poetry in the historic hall. Link to book in bio. 🔗
Mudlark and trade token specialist Sean Clarke will be leading walking tours through Central London, guided by 17th century trade tokens and visiting the historic sites were the traders once worked and lived. Link to book in bio. 🔗
And that’s a wrap! Today is the last day of the ‘Secrets of the Thames Exhibition’. I will be there with a small display, and a very full heart! It’s been an incredible year, with amazing Mudlarks showing even more amazing artefacts. This is all thanks to curators Kate Sumnall and Stuart Wyatt who have given us mudlarks so much credit and trust. We have felt our contribution to the history of London finally recognised, and it has been a wonderful honour.
Lovely to see @si_finds down at the Secrets exhibition yesterday with his blooming brilliant model of the Grapes pub, made out of foreshore finds and complete with two cats! Bumped into Nic, Sam, Ed, Maarina, Anna, Vicky, Stuart and Kate. Time is ticking fast now. Just two days left….
Event! 28th & 29th March, 11am-12:30pm, Watermen’s Hall and City of London: Join mudlark and trade token expert, Sean Clarke, @seanclarkmudlark , on a guided walking tour through historic London.
In the River Thames, mudlarks have found hundreds of traders’ tokens issued by shops, taverns, inns and other businesses in the 17th century. These tokens reveal the names of the owners, their shops and the addresses of their businesses.
See some of the original trade tokens found by mudlarks and hear about their fascinating backstories dating back to the 17th century, a turbulent time of war, plague and the Great Fire of London.
The walk will continue to the banks of the magical River Thames where Sean will talk about some of the fascinating mudlarking finds from the area and the insights they reveal.
These artefacts will be on display for you to see when the tour finishes at Watermen’s Hall, the historic home of the Thames Watermen & Lightermen, where a free mudlarking exhibition is taking place.
Step inside and see thousands of artefacts recovered from the Thames and meet the people who found them.
Please follow the Hands on History website link in bio for booking and more info.
Event! 28th & 29th March, 1-1:30pm, Watermen’s Hall: Join us for a short talk and river readings from award-winning poet and mudlark J. R. Carpenter @jrcarpenter in the intimate setting of the sitting room of historic Watermen’s Hall.
From the Thames to the Dart, the Ribble to the Itchen, the kisiskâciwanisîpiy in Treaty 6 territory in western Canada, and back to the Thames again, J. R. will lead us on a journey through the interconnected waterways which run through her recent poetry collections.
There will be a Q&A and book signing with the author after the reading. Tickets are £5 plus booking fee. The full ticket price (minus booking fee) can be redeemed as a discount on the purchase of books. Seating is limited, booking is essential.
Please follow the Hands on History website link in bio for booking and more info.
Saturday 28th February will be a ‘Meet the Mudlark’ day at the Beautiful Canons House in Mitcham. For your delectation will be stunning curated displays by yours truly, Jason Sandy, Graham duHeaume, Sam Caethoven, Jessica Forde, Maarina Budd, and others. Huge thanks to Nagat Abououf, who has given so many hours to curate this exhibition, helped by Jason Sandy. His box is to die for! Hopefully see you there! #canonshouseandgrounds #mudlark #mudlarking
My mudlarking bag is so personal to me. It has to be waterproof, tough, comfortable and practical. Today I said goodbye to my old bag after four or five years usage. It had survived many different foreshores, sandy, muddy, chalky and full of rusty iron debris. coastal areas, jetties, and me climbing up ladders, swinging my bag over revetments and river walls. My poor bag held up for a long time but I had to face facts that it was finally knackered! So here is the replacement. A Yeti Cayo 35 litre backpack with tough ‘dryhide’ exterior, welded seams and PU coated zips. I spent a long time researching the perfect replacement and fingers crossed, this is it. It’s big enough to hold my entire kit, if necessary, including boots. First try out next week. I will let you know how it works out! Btw, it isn’t cheap, but I was lucky enough to find an unwanted xmas present on Ebay. Having handled it now, I think it is worth the dosh. #yeticayobackpack #yeticayo
I’m rather excited! Tonight I will be giving a talk at Jonnie’s first ever Curistorian Club event at the Devereaux Pub. I get to bring along one of my latest finds, a medieval veil pin, recognisable by its bent shank and beautiful faceted cast copper alloy head. It was totally embedded within a chunk of compacted crud, with just the tiniest spike of golden needle point sticking out. What a joy to discover the delicate head, bright gold in colour with Thames gilding. #bowlofchalk #medieval #veilpin #mudlarking #riverthamesmudlarkingfindsfacebook
