8 October 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

2000-year-old anchor discovered at the bottom of the North Sea

A possible Iron Age anchor made from wrought iron was found at the bottom of the southern North Sea during survey works for ScottishPower Renewables’ East Anglia ONE offshore wind farm.

The artifact is thought to date from the Roman or late Iron Age, putting it between 1,600 and 2,000 years old.  It is thought that the discovery could provide evidence of ancient Roman seafaring and trading in the southern North Sea, off the coast of the East of England.

The anchor, which was over two meters long and weighed about 100 kilograms, is thought to have been estimated from a 500–600 ton ship, possibly one of the larger merchant ships in the Roman fleet.

The anchor most likely came from a sizable merchant ship in the Roman fleet because it shares several characteristics with anchors used on ships during the Roman Imperial period.

The Classis Britannica was the first British navy and the regional fleet of the Roman province of Britannia. It operated from the middle of the first century AD to the middle of the third century AD, despite the fact that very little physical maritime evidence has been found. As in Agricola’s campaign into Caledonia (Scotland), where the Classis would have scouted the coastline and resupplied the advancing legions as they pressed further north into tribal territories, erecting forts and temporary encampments, the navy’s function was to provide coastal support to land forces.



📣 Our WhatsApp channel is now LIVE! Stay up-to-date with the latest news and updates, just click here to follow us on WhatsApp and never miss a thing!!



Roman anchor 140 feet below sea level.
Roman anchor 140 feet below sea level. Photo: ScottishPower

The fleet’s primary focus during the final years of Roman rule in Britain was defending the Eastern and Southern coasts from Frankish piracy and Saxon raids against coastal towns known as the Saxonicum or Saxon Shore.

The anchor has first found in 2018 during marine seabed survey works by ScottishPower Renewables for its East Anglia ONE offshore wind farm around 40km off the Suffolk coast.

Protected by an exclusion zone installed on the seabed during construction works and monitored using remote underwater technology due to concerns over its long-term preservation, the anchor was safely and carefully recovered from the water in 2021.

The anchor is the most recent of numerous significant historical and archaeological discoveries made while building the wind farm. Among these is a missing German submarine from World War I, numerous artifacts from the Bronze Age, Iron Age, Roman, and Medieval periods discovered during onshore excavation work, and a prehistoric monument dating back more than 4,000 years, complete with a rare Neolithic wooden trackway and platform and an ancient wild cattle (Auroch) skull radiocarbon-dating to around 6,000 years.

 It is currently undergoing detailed imaging and analysis to better determine its age and will eventually go on permanent display in collaboration with the Colchester and Ipswich Museums.

The conservation work is being carried out by ScottishPower Renewables’ commissioned specialists Maritime Archaeology Ltd, in collaboration with Mary Rose Archaeological Services, and with advice and guidance from Historic England’s material science experts throughout the process.

Cover Photo: ScottishPower

Related Articles

New study: Human brains preserve in diverse environments for at least 12 000 years

21 March 2024

21 March 2024

A study by forensic anthropologist Alexandra Morton-Hayward and her team from the University of Oxford has shown that the human...

Archaeologists Uncover Oldest Greek Marble Altar in Western Mediterranean at Tartessian Site in Spain

7 July 2025

7 July 2025

The discovery of the Oldest Greek Marble Altar in the Western Mediterranean offers unprecedented insight into Tartessian culture and its...

Researchers may have found the wreck of British explorer James Cook’s Endeavour

3 February 2022

3 February 2022

The wreck of Captain James Cook’s famed vessel the Endeavour has been found off the coast of the U.S. state...

Archaeologists deciphered the Sabaean inscription on a clay jar finds link between King Solomon and the Queen of Sheba

3 April 2023

3 April 2023

Archaeologists deciphered a partially preserved inscription that was found on the neck of a large jar dated back to the...

Archaeologists Uncover Double-Headed Ritual Hearths in Anatolia’s Tadım Mound

17 August 2025

17 August 2025

Governor Numan Hatipoğlu announced on his official X account that archaeologists at Tadım Castle and Mound (Tadım Höyük) have uncovered...

Archaeologists have discovered a 2800-year-old Urartian Castle in eastern Turkey

17 June 2021

17 June 2021

Archaeologists discovered the ruins of a castle going back 2,800 years on a mountain 2,500 meters (8,200 feet) above sea...

Ancient Tamil Nadu’s Metalworking Legacy Traced Back to 3300 BCE

7 February 2025

7 February 2025

Recent archaeological research has uncovered compelling evidence that Tamil Nadu’s metalworking traditions date back to at least 3300 BCE, highlighting...

A rare 3,300-year-old bronze helmet reaching the present from the Hittite Empire era

17 July 2022

17 July 2022

The 3,300-year-old bronze helmet, which was unearthed during the 2002 excavations in Şapinuva, one of the important cult centers of...

Archaeologists uncover a 1,500-year-old Lost Mayan city in the Yucatan

28 May 2022

28 May 2022

Researchers have presented their findings after discovering the remnants of an ancient Mayan city on a building site in Mexico....

A Dancing Muses statue 2175 years old was found in the ancient city of Stratonikeia, known as the city of eternal loves

7 December 2023

7 December 2023

The latest discovery in the ongoing excavations in the Ancient City of Stratonikeia, known as the city of eternal loves...

Unexpected Results Of Ancient DNA Study: Analysis sheds light on the early peopling of South America

3 November 2022

3 November 2022

Around 60,000 years ago, modern humans left Africa and quickly spread across six continents. Researchers can trace this epic migration...

A 2,000-year-old ancient “mirror” throws light on aristocratic life in China

17 May 2022

17 May 2022

Archeologists in Beijing have successfully reconstructed a 2,000-year-ago dressing mirror once cherished by the high nobility during the Han Dynasty....

AI Uncovers Lost Babylonian Hymn After 3,000 Years — A Glorious Ode to the Ancient City

3 July 2025

3 July 2025

Archaeologists and AI experts uncover a 3,000-year-old hymn praising Babylon‘s grandeur, revealing rare insights into ancient urban society, education, and...

409 silver coins, found in the Mleiha area of Sharjah, were inspired by Alexander the Great and the Seleucid dynasty

17 July 2021

17 July 2021

409 silver coins dating to the 3rd century have been found in the Mleiha area of Sharjah in the United...

An Unusual Artifact Points to Roman Britain Rituals Linked to Fertility, Painted Dog Penis Bone Found in England

9 January 2025

9 January 2025

In a Roman quarry shaft in Surrey, England, archaeologists have discovered one of the most unusual human and animal remains...