Recent erosion uncovers new findings

The stripping of up to seven metres of sand from many East Anglian beaches and the cut back of more than 25 metres of dune defences has led to numerous discoveries of hidden artefacts, some valuable, others more disturbing.

The oil flooding of the East Anglian beaches that emanated following the 6th May 1978 collision of the 12,000 tonne heavy fuel tanker ‘Eleni V’ was deeply buried under the sand in large pits, out of sight and out of mind. But it is now exposed and washing out again, polluting both the beach and the sea.

The picture of the once extensive sandy Caister beach, now all stones

The picture of the once extensive sandy Caister beach, now all stones, was taken by Roger Cooke on 20th April.

The sand stripping has left large areas of beach covered with large stones and litter galore, much of which must have been interred much earlier. The wreckage of destroyed bungalows including their metal structural content, window glass and bricks now forms a hazard. Remains of well rusted world-war 2 defences such as barbed wire, pivots, posts and concrete, and possibly munitions from deep beach burials in 1945 are now on the surface. The only beneficiaries are those busy hunting with metal-detectors and the archaeologists, who are findings the remains of long forgotten buildings.

One of such emerged at Caister-on-Sea in the form of the foundations of the old Georgian Manor House Hotel depicted here. This was built in 1793, converted to a hotel in 1894 which was extended to 36 bedrooms in the 1920s.

The Manor House Hotel, in Caister, 1941.

The Manor House Hotel, in Caister, 1941.

 

The photograph below taken by James Bass shows the remains now uncovered fronted by a WW-II ‘pillbox’ and the metalwork of Dutch groynes, with even some bedrock visible…

Metal work and old buildings exposed after coastal erosion of the beach at Caister on Sea

Metal work and old buildings exposed after coastal erosion of the beach at Caister on Sea. Picture: James Bass


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