The Circle Volume 19

THE CIRCLE

In this issue:

1. The Society of Thames Mudlarks

An eccentric group of amateur historians from all walks of life, are dedicated to recovering and preserving London’s rich history. They search the Thames foreshore for historic artefacts and treasure.

2. Deep South Delights

The Agulhas region of the Overberg in the Western Cape is a visitor’s delight. Whether you base yourself in Arniston, Bredasdorp, Struisbaai or de Hoop, there is always much to see and do, all within an hour’s drive.

1.

The Society of Thames Mudlarks

In AD43 when the invading Romans sailed up the river Thames, they found a perfect site for a port, close to where London Bridge stands today. The Romans named the area Londinium. Since its birth on the banks of the Thames, London has been shaped by the river that runs through it. For thousands of years and from source to sea, people have been losing, dropping, sacrificing and throwing things into the Thames, making it arguably the longest archeological site in the world.

The section of the Thames through London beneath Teddington Lock is tidal. Twice a day, the Thames in London fills with tidal water, rising in places as much as 7 meters.

The rising tide tosses up ancient layers of mud, and at low tide, exposes a new collection of centuries of rich sediment which reveals the city’s past.

Some priceless objects have been fished from the London Thames over the years, including the Battersea Shield, the Wandsworth shield-boss, and the Waterloo horned helmet, all on display in the British museum.

Historic mudlarking

During the late 18th and 19th centuries, poor and destitute people living near the river Thames could scrape a livelihood by searching the muddy shores at low tide for anything that could be sold – bottles, ropes, wood, clothing, shoes, lumps of coal - and by pilfering from passing river traffic. Mudlarks were mostly youngsters aged between 8 and 15, or the robust elderly. Becoming a mudlark was usually dictated by poverty and lack of skills. Work conditions were filthy, as waste would wash onto the shores from raw sewage and sometimes the corpses of humans, cats and dogs would be thrown up.

It was a dangerous life. Mudlarks would often contract diseases or cut themselves on broken glass left on the shore.

In 1904 a person could still claim to be a "mudlark" as a lawful occupation.

The Society of Thames Mudlarks

The Society of Thames Mudlarks, formed in the late 1970s, is an exclusive group of amateur history hunters from all walks of life, who search the London foreshore for historic artefacts and treasure.

This select group, restricted to around 50 members, shares a common passion for recovering, preserving and collecting fragments of London’s rich history.

Members of the Society of Thames Mudlarks are the only people to be allowed an exclusive Digging Permit which allows, on certain parts of the North shore, excavation to a maximum depth of 1.3 meters.

Anyone can walk the length of the capital’s exposed shore at low tide but only Mudlarks, who record all their finds with the British Museum, can excavate the rich north bank between Westminster, in the west of the old city, and the Tower of London in the east.

In the modern era, metal detectors are used by some members to search for metal valuables that may have washed ashore. Other members prefer a simple trowel. Most finds are everyday items of rubbish discarded centuries ago, but still shed light on the city’s past.

The wide range of artifacts revealed with the turning of each tide, and the mixed bag of eccentric individual mudlarks who retrieve them, are a testament to London’s own historic diversity.

The Society of Thames Mudlarks

A selection of rings found on the banks of the River

Thames

by Mudlark

John Higginbotham

The idea for this article came from 2 books

“Thames - the sacred river” by Peter Ackroyd, Chatto, 2007, and “Digging up Britain’s past” by Dr Neil Faulkner, BBC Books, 2003.

You need a permit

In London, you need a licence from the Port of London Authority for mudlarking. The PLA and the Crown Estate are the largest land owners of the Thames foreshore and jointly administer the permit system. The PLA issues two types of permits - a Standard Permit, which allows day visitors to dig to a shallow depth of 7.5 cm and, to members of the Society of Thames Mudlarks only, a Digging Permit which allows digging to a maximum depth of 1.3 meters. Anyone can make an application for a Standard permit, which costs £42 per day. The Port of London Authority issued about 1500 of these permits last year.

There is a waiting list to join the Society of Thames Mudlarks and membership is controlled.

Where to go

The northern, older bank of the river provides the best findings. As a day visitor, the wisest course is to go with a guide familiar with the tide. You might find medieval roof tiles charred by the Great Fire of 1666, or shards of Roman pottery. You’ll definitely find remnants of clay pipes – forerunners of cigarettes - in abundance.

You may also find chunks of Tudor beer tankards, ancient bottles, smashed Delftware crockery, buttons, keys, cutlery, pilgrim badges, medieval toys, and the occasional leather shoe. You are likely to find 2,500 years of history dispersed along the same shoreline.

Your findings don’t have to be reported unless you find something valuable. Then it must be reported as treasure under the Treasure Act 1996, or submitted for analysis and review via the Portable Antiquities Scheme.

The mystery garnets

When the tide recedes in a certain part of Central London, it exposes hundreds of red garnets clustered on the surface of the exposed riverbed.

No one knows exactly where the garnets came from or how they ended up at the bottom of the River Thames. Perhaps it was a shipment from the East Indies that fell into the river during unloading? As long as you have a permit, you may remove all the garnets you can find. They are going to be swept into the sea eventually, anyway.

You can also keep any single coin you turn up. But any other object with more than 10 percent gold or silver is treasure and becomes government property until the museums decide what to pay you for it.

The river

For hundreds of years the river has been used as a resource for flushing away waste. By 1858, the pollution and sewage in the Thames was so bad that parliament had to be suspended – which led to the development of a new city sewer system, built by Sir Joseph Bazalgette in 1865.

But by 1957, the old Victorian sewers were not coping with increased volumes and the Natural History Museum declared the Thames ‘biologically dead’.

London’s sewage system was improved in the 1960s and the river began to breathe again.

The river

Today the water quality is much better and a wide range of projects to encourage aquatic life have been successful. A new super-sewer is under construction that will bring what Bazalgette created into the 21st century and beyond. It is due for completion in 2025.

Today 125 species of fish live in the Thames, and dolphins have been spotted up the river in London. The Thames is currently one of the cleanest city waterways in the world and provides two thirds of London’s drinking water. The river has always been, and will remain, an essential resource for Londoners.

2. Deep South Delights

Agulhas

The Agulhas region of the Overberg in the Western Cape is a visitor’s delight. Base yourself in Arniston, Bredasdorp, Struisbaai or de Hoop, and there is much to see and do, all within an hour’s drive.

You can enjoy strolling through the local fynbos, bird watching, hiking, swimming in tidal pools or even join in a game of Jukskei on Saturday mornings.

There are many arts and craft shops, local wine tasting, and you can enjoy a memorable meal at one of the many restaurants in the region.

Shipwrecks

And of course, go to the beach. Over the centuries the area has had a bad reputation with sailors. This stretch of coast has the grim record of having the greatest number of shipwrecks in southern Africa. Over 140 ships have met their violent end along this coastline, the two most famous being the HMS Birkenhead (1852) and the Arniston (1815).

The gale force winds and strong ocean currents in these waters can create rogue waves 30 meters high. The toxic combination of storms, reefs, inaccurate maps and primitive navigational technology, have wrecked ships on this coast for centuries.

Cape Agulhas

The little village of Cape Agulhas on the southernmost tip of Africa, is 220 kms south-east of Cape Point as the crow flies. There is a walkway along the seafront to the monument where the two oceans meet.

You can also visit the lighthouse and stroll further along the walkway to view the shipwreck of the Meisho Maru.

Just four kilometers from Cape Agulhas you come to the holiday village of Struisbaai. It was a fishing village for many years and still has a beautiful natural harbour.

A great deal of development has taken place in recent years, populations and prices have boomed, and a shopping mall is under construction.

Struisbaai 2

Some fishermen still operate in Struisbaai but it is now better known for its leisure activities, which include fishing, kite surfing, horse-riding, hiking, paintball, quad biking and diving.

Bredasdorp 1

It is the biggest town in Cape Agulhas, “the county seat”, a commercial community with a gentle, peaceful atmosphere. As you wind your way out of the centre of town and through the suburban areas, you will find quaint and spacious homes with well-groomed gardens. The houses are spread out on large plots. The town feels secure and homely. Enjoy farm-style lunches, browse franchise shops and curio stores. Bredasdorp provides more than one would’ve expected on arrival. People from the surrounding villages and farms come to Bredasdorp to do their shopping and banking, and meet up with friends.

Bredasdorp 2

For a view of the town make your way up to a higher point on the ridge where you can look over the dam. You will see quaint old houses interspersed with modern architecture, smoke from the wheat silos in the distance, and a kaleidoscope of greens, yellows and reds in the rolling valleys.

Visit the shipwreck museum next to the NG Church to view the artefacts and remains from four of the biggest wrecks in the area, the Arniston, Birkenhead, Queen of the Thames and Oriental Pioneer.

Shipwreck Museum

De Hoop Nature Reserve

This magnificent mountain and sea reserve is a 45minute drive from Bredasdorp. Few other reserves provide as much as De Hoop – vast sea views, sand dunes, the vlei, a floral sensation of rare fynbos plants, diverse antelope and the Potberg Mountains, home to a colony of endangered Cape vultures.

De Hoop offers some of the best land-based whalewatching in South Africa. From May to November between 500 and 600 whales will find a home at De Hoop. Sit on the sand dunes and watch the Southern Right Whales as they come close to shore.

De Hoop Nature Reserve 2

Guests can choose between various day walks through the rich fynbos plains or along the deserted coastline, or mountain biking along the many gravel roads, or scenic game drives.

Birders observe wading birds on the shores of the vlei while hikers and cyclists have close-up encounters with bontebok, Cape Mountain zebra, eland, baboons and ostrich.

Accommodation ranges from self-catering cottages to fully catered luxury suites.

The Fig Tree Restaurant in the Opstal area is open all day. We recommend enjoying at least one meal at the restaurant.

The wreck of the Arniston

On the night of 30 May 1815, The Arniston – with 100 wounded soldiers, some wealthy passengers and their families aboard – was on its way back to England from Ceylon, when it was caught in a violent storm.

After being separated from the convoy in heavy seas, the captain was forced to rely on dead reckoning to navigate. Assuming that they were just off Table Bay, when in fact they had not yet passed Cape Agulhas, he gave the order to make for the shore.

The ship didn’t have a chronometer –an expensive instrument at the time – and had to rely on other ships in the fleet to calculate its position.

The Arniston 2

The Arniston struck a reef near the small village of Waenhuiskrans. Only six sailors survived the wreck, out of 378 passengers and crew. The survivors made their way to the shore, where they sheltered in a nearby cave, living off whatever supplies happened to wash up on the beach.

By pure chance a farmer’s son discovered them a few days later, and they were able to make their way back to Cape Town, walking past beaches littered with bodies.

The Arniston 3

Waenhuiskrans was renamed Arniston in honour of those lost in the shipwreck. Over the years, the name of the wreck has become synonymous with the name of the location and today the labels 'Arniston' and 'Waenhuiskrans' are used interchangeably.

The wreck lies about 900 meters offshore, under six meters of water.

An underwater excavation in 1982 recovered a number of artefacts, which are on display at the Bredasdorp Shipwreck Museum, 24 kilometers to the north.

The village of Arniston

Arniston is just 45 kms from Cape Agulhas. Prior to the wreck of the Arniston, the village was known to local farmers as Waenhuiskrans, an Afrikaans name meaning literally "Wagon house cliff", after a local sea cave which is large enough to accommodate a wagon and a span of oxen. Waenhuiskrans Cave can be visited at low tide. At first only a fishing community, Arniston has become a holiday destination with beach cottages and luxury apartments. Whale watching is a regular tourist activity. The Arniston Hotel is a popular venue that looks out over the ocean. The sandy beaches are all within walking distance of the cottages and are family-friendly and safe for swimming. You can swim, fish, or go snorkeling in the warm and welcoming sea.

Arniston

Kassiesbaai 1

Located next to the thriving holiday town of Arniston, the Grade 1 heritage site of Kassiesbaai is credited as being the last remaining historical fishing village on the Overberg coast, and immortalised in countless photographs and paintings of whitewashed thatched cottages. The beautifully renovated Kassiesbaai was officially declared a National Heritage Site in 1986.

The name is derived from the wooden crates or paraffin kassies (boxes) that washed up on shore from shipwrecks. These were often used by early fishermen as building material for their homes. Today the local Fishermen’s Union owns the title deed to all the land.

Kassiesbaai 2

There was contact between the Khoisan nomads and the survivors of shipwrecks, from the 16th century onwards. The more recent history of Kassiesbaai goes back some 160 years to a more stable developed community of fishermen comprising indigenous Khoekhoe, freed and escaped slaves, survivors of shipwrecks, sailors who had jumped ship, and former servants of colonial pioneers.

In 1922, Arniston / Waenhuiskrans was finally established as a town and in 1932 the Fishermen’s Union was founded to manage the fishing village of Kassiesbaai. The now established community has prospered and continued their humble lifestyle in the traditional ways of their forefathers.

Kassiesbaai 3

Many holidaymakers are surprised to find Kassiesbaai still exists. The village, with its lime-washed and thatched houses, remains unspoiled. The locally made opentopped boats still put to sea and return with nets of yellowtail (geelstert) and red fish (rooivis) destined for the restaurants and dinner tables of Arniston or Cape Town. The community is aware that the catches are declining and the sea cannot provide a living for ever. The Fisherman’s Union Trust provides bursaries for those who wish to study further, and the locals have worked to position Kassiesbaai as a unique tourist attraction for local and foreign visitors.

Visitors can wander through the narrow winding streets of traditional Kassiesbaai and soak up the atmosphere. Its friendly inhabitants are happy to chat and the thatched cottages still look much the same as the original permanent stone homes built in the 1890s.

The Circle is a private hobby magazine for family and friends, and retired Midstreamers.

Morning view, Champagne Castle, Natal Drakensberg

Photographs in this issue have been sourced from Overberg tourism, SA History websites, Wikipedia, SA Tourism website, the British Museum and Society of Antiquarians, and my personal collection.