Archaeological discovery could have come from possible shipwreck near Ramsgate

Objects from a possible Roman shipwreck have been found off the coast of Kent in one of the most unusual archaeological finds in living memory.

The chance discoveries were made by a kayaker in the sea off Ramsgate. The tide was low enough and the water clear enough for him to reach down and pull out beautiful cobalt blue glassware and high-status Roman pottery, called Samian ware.

Mark Dunkley, a marine listing adviser with Historic England, said it was the sort of find which just did not happen in the UK. “It is the rarity of the material and the quality of the material that is really significant. In my experience this stuff just does not exist in an underwater context anywhere around Britain. It is a really significant find.”

The discovery has raised the tantalising possibility of it coming from a Roman ship, wrecked close to the Kent coast.

Another possibility is that it could be from a Roman land site, which is now under water because of coastal erosion. If that is the case the objects could be votive offerings, a practice which saw Romans leaving valuable goods in the hope it would ensure the gods gave them a safe passage.

Whatever the answer, the find is rare and exciting, said Dunkley.

He and fellow archaeologists inspected the items this week and were due to survey the area in a small boat on Wednesday but were thwarted by the tides. The plan now is to return in August when the tides are more forgiving.

The discovery is particularly exciting because the area is so significant for the Roman invasion of Britain, said Dunkley. Julius Caesar landed in Ebbsfleet in 54BC and important forts were established at Richborough and Reculver.

Facebook Twitter Pinterest Roman roof tile with human fingerprint found by a sea kayaker. Photograph: Historic England

They guarded the Wantsum Channel, a strait which separated the Isle of Thanet from the mainland until the middle ages and was used by the Romans as a thoroughfare to connect the English Channel with the Thames estuary.

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“This potential Roman site sits on the southern end of the Wantsum channel and the material is dated to at least the late first, early second century AD,” said Dunkley. “That ties in with the development of Richborough as the gateway to Roman Britain.

“What we don’t know, and what we hoped to find out, is whether this rare Roman find is from a shipwreck that was traversing the Wantsum Channel, or was supplying Richborough fort itself.

“Or is it from a site then on the Roman shoreline which is now under water?”