Maritime record MDO43223 - Medieval ship, the Mortar Wreck, Swash Channel

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Summary

The partially-exposed wreck of a wooden ship. The remains of clinker hull planking and several stone mortars and dressed stone grave slabs. In 2019 divers from Bournemouth University observed the wreck when investigating a previously-recorded obstruction; a pile of quarry stones.

Map

Type and Period (1)

Full Description

06-OCT-1982 Large quarry stones located by divers. Stones measure approx. 1.5 X 2feet, piled 3 feet high and approx. 6 feet long. 08-APR-1983 Confirmation of above. (1)


United Kingdom Hydrographic Office, 1992, Hydrographic Office wreck index (Index). SWX4837.

Nayling, N, and Tyers, C, 2020, Mortar Wreck Site, Poole, Dorset. Tree-ring Analysis of Oak Timbers (Unpublished document). SDO18725.

Cousins, T, 2024, The Mortar Wreck: A mid-thirteenth-century ship, wrecked off Studland Bay, Dorset, carrying a cargo of Purbeck stone. Anitquity 98 (400), 991-1005 (Article in serial). SDO21720.

Sources/Archives (3)

  • --- Unpublished document: Nayling, N, and Tyers, C. 2020. Mortar Wreck Site, Poole, Dorset. Tree-ring Analysis of Oak Timbers.
  • --- Article in serial: Cousins, T. 2024. The Mortar Wreck: A mid-thirteenth-century ship, wrecked off Studland Bay, Dorset, carrying a cargo of Purbeck stone. Anitquity 98 (400). 991-1005.
  • --- Index: United Kingdom Hydrographic Office. 1992. Hydrographic Office wreck index.

Finds (0)

Related Monuments/Buildings (1)

Related Events/Activities (1)

Location

Grid reference SZ 053 843 (point)
Map sheet SZ08SE

Protected Status/Designation

Other Statuses/References

  • Legacy UID: Dorset Sites and Monuments Record: 9 000 0922
  • Legacy UID: National Monuments Record: SZ 08 SE 6
  • Legacy UID: National Record of the Historic Environment: 832532

Record last edited

Feb 17 2026 3:34PM

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