I skirt the river Thames most days, usually in a packed train, though occasionally I stroll along its banks and admire the gleam of its water. But it is what lies beneath the river’s waves that is most fascinating, as I discovered at the London Museum Docklands’s exhibition, .
The show is devoted to mudlarking, the popular hobby that sees people scour the Thames at low tide for hidden treasures. From murky beginnings – tales of thievery and scams open the show – mudlarking is revealed as a vital archaeological resource. And London’s riverbed has rich pickings.
From false teeth to Iron Age helmets, each cabinet holds fresh wonders, disgorged in near-pristine condition. On display are loaded dice, hunting knives, Viking brooches, eel spears and more, shed by the city’s residents over the centuries.
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These objects are a journey through London’s history, telling stories of the rich and the destitute, warriors and enslaved. It made me want to hunt treasure myself.
