(TR 3350 5810) A quantity of ship's timbers were uncovered during the course of laying a main sewer at Sandwich, Kent. They were identified as the remains of a clinker built ship, tentatively dated as early C15th. The location of the trench, in the parish of St Clements, was in the remains of the outer defensive ditch in the area known as the Bulwarks, part of the medieval earthworks surrounding the town. At this point both walls and ditch are approximately 50m from, and at right angles to, the River Stour. The trench followed the line of the old defensive ditch and, at the outer or eastern side of it, was some 1.5m wide and 3-3.5m deep, the timbers being recovered over a distance of approximately 33m, giving a vessel of perhaps something approaching this length (see illustration card no 1). Altogether there are some 30 constructional members and about 50 fragments, ranging in length from 3.25m to 0.5m. Damage to the ends of the frames suggested that the vessel had been robbed of all timber down to the unladen water. (1) Sunday 12th May 2002, by Brian & Carole McNaughton, Don & Tassa McGregor and Rob Munday carried out a resistivity survey on the ditch to find the extend of the timbers. However no conclusive evidence of there being any more timbers was found, but it did show that there are anomalies on the site.

Historic England archive material: ME001517 Annotated plan with six profiles showing the castle and the standing and destroyed parts of the town wall The plan also shows the position of the river Stour and two streams running along the south west side of the wall. The sites of three churches and the kings castle are also shown

<1> KAR 36 Summer 1974 166-9 (RE Trussler) (OS Card Reference). SKE45317.

<2> Kent Archaeological Society, 2002, Sandwich Bulwarks Geophysical Survey (Unpublished document). SKE8304.