Ahead of their 10 year anniversary, Thames Discovery Programme, the award-winning community archaeology project, have released their first ever book.
Entitled ‘The River’s Tale’, it is the first book on the archaeology of the River Thames since the late Ivor Noël Hume’s 1956 publication, ‘Treasure in the Thames’
It is a celebration of 10 years of archaeological discovery and includes fascinating information on some key foreshore sites including evidence of royal feasting and lost palaces at Greenwich, naval shipbreaking in Rotherhithe and the oldest structure so far recorded in Greater London in Vauxhall.
The River Thames is London’s longest archaeological site and its foreshore holds tantalising evidence of the human history that has shaped it. In their race against time and tide to discover and understand the archaeology before it is washed away or covered by shifting sands and silts, TDP have made some fascinating discoveries and continue to record and monitor significant sites with their huge network of dedicated volunteers, the Foreshore Recording and Observation Group (FROGs).
‘The River’s Tale’ explores how London has been defined by the Thames from prehistory to the present day. It tells the story of the river as an ever-changing landscape, an artery of communication and lifeblood of the city, adopted and utilised by the communities that live along it and protected by the Port of London Authority.