Pottery as plunder: a 17th-century maritime site in Limehouse, London

• Published in: Post-medieval archaeology 2005-03, Vol.39 (1), p.1-91
• Main Authors: Killock, Douglas, Meddens, Frank, Armitage, Philip, Egan, Geoff, Gaimster, David, Jarrett, Chris, Keys, Lynne, Phillpotts, Chris, Sabel, Ken, Tyson, Rachel, Willmott, Hugh
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• ISSN: 0079-4236; 1745-8137
• DOI: 10.1179/007943205X53363

The site at 43-53 Narrow Street, located in the Ratcliff area, produced unprecedented finds relating to the period of London's expansion as a mercantile centre during the 17th century. The most extensive and interesting discoveries comprised a late 15th-century brick clamp, and building remains with associated pits and ditches dating from the 16th through to the 18th centuries. The remains dating to the late 16th through to the end of the 17th century proved to be former properties of people with a maritime focus, heavily involved in piracy and privateering. The pits and ditches, particularly those of 17th-century date, were filled with pottery, glass and other objects, a significant proportion of which originated in the Netherlands, France, Germany, Spain, Italy, Portugal, Turkey, Iran and China, and many of the examples recovered have otherwise rarely if ever been found in Britain. It is argued that the most appropriate interpretation of the finds assemblage is as the remains of booty and global mercantile and illicit trade at a time that access to the New World and the Far East was being opened up and fought over. The discoveries offered a unique opportunity to view a 17th-century community of intimately interacting seafaring families from the perspective of their land-based material culture and the remains of their homes. This paper focuses on the development of the site from the late medieval period to the early 18th century, and places the finds for this period in their historical context, providing a unique insight into the material culture of a new and emerging social class in early modern England.