A Roman clay pot thought to be at least 1,800 years old has been discovered broken into two perfectly fitting halves on a muddy beach.
The top half of the jigsaw vessel was initially found just weeks before the bottom half, which lay around 30 ft away and was uncovered on a subsequent visit.
Believed to date back to the second century AD, the pot features a cross-hatching design across its base...
Walker discovers half of 2,000-year-old Roman pot on a muddy beach then finds the other half five weeks later just 30ft away
The top half of the vessel was initially found five weeks prior to the bottom half
It is believed to date back to between 140 AD to the mid third century AD
The history buff who found it has been offered £2,000 by a private collector
However, he intends to donate the unique historical find to a museum
By Tim Collins For Mailonline
19 October 2018
A Roman clay pot thought to be at least 1,800 years old has been discovered broken into two perfectly fitting halves on a muddy beach.
The top half of the jigsaw vessel was initially found just weeks before the bottom half, which lay around 30 ft away and was uncovered on a subsequent visit.
Believed to date back to the second century AD, the pot features a cross-hatching design across its base.
A Roman clay pot thought to be at least 1,800 years old has been discovered broken into two perfectly fitting halves on a muddy beach
Father-of-two Steve Tomlinson, 47, was out for a stroll on the beach when he came across a piece of pottery sticking out of the ground.
Roman history enthusiast Mr Tomlinson was delighted when he realised he had discovered the top half of a Roman pot.
Five weeks later Mr Tomlinson, an ecologist, visited the beach again to see what else he could find - and his disbelief was compounded when he found the bottom half stuck in mud a stone's throw away.
Sure enough, when stunned Mr Tomlinson jigsawed the two pieces together back at home, they fit perfectly and formed a complete Roman clay pot.
The top half of the jigsaw vessel was initially found just weeks before the bottom half, which lay around 30 ft (9m) away and was uncovered on a subsequent visit
Mr Tomlinson, from Birchington, Kent, said he 'couldn't believe' his find and has since been offered £2,000 for it by a private collector.
However, he won't accept the offer for the six-inch-tall pot, which was found on a beach on the Thames Estuary, Kent, as he believes it holds significant archaeological value and deserves to be in a museum.
The pot is a piece of black burnished ware pottery - a type of ceramic made and distributed in the Thames Estuary area between 140 AD through to the mid third century.
Believed to date back to the second century AD, the pot features a cross-hatching design across its base
Father-of-two Steve Tomlinson, 47, was out for a stroll on the beach when he came across a piece of pottery sticking out of the ground
Mr Tomlinson, from Birchington, Kent, said he 'couldn't believe' his find and has since been offered £2,000 for it by a private collector
Mr Tomlinson said: 'I just couldn't believe it - to find the two pieces weeks apart is a one in a million chance.
'I'm into archaeology, but I was down there just mooching around - I hadn't gone to the Estuary to look for anything. But, there it was.
'I just don't believe it, what are the chances?
'When you go to museums, everything is behind glass. When I found this I thought to myself the last person to touch this was alive 2,000 years ago.
'I will report this to the finds liaison officer, and if it's of specific interest, I would consider giving it to a museum to share our heritage.
'I've had an offer of £2,000 from a private collector, but for me it's not about the money. It's about the archaeological value, the historical value.
'It's not about money. It's about what we can learn from this piece of history.'
Jo Ahmet, finds liaison officer for Kent said he only sees reports of whole pots being found two or three times a year.
He said: 'A complete pot is not hugely common. I've only had two this year.
'This pot is quite large too, which makes it unusual. Other complete pots tend to be tea-cup size.'
WHEN DID THE ROMANS OCCUPY BRITAIN?
55BC - Julius Caesar crossed the channel with around 10,000 soldiers. They landed at a beach in Deal and were met by a force of Britons. Caesar was forced to withdraw.
54BC - Caesar crossed the channel with 27,000 infantry and cavalry. Again they landed at deal but were unopposed. They marched inland and after hard battles they defeated the Britons and key tribal leaders surrendered.
However, later that year, Caesar was forced to return to Gaul to deal with problems there and the Romans left.
54BC - 43BC - Although there were no Romans present in Britain during these years, their influence increased due to trade links.
43AD - A Roman force of 40,000 led by Aulus Plautius landed in Kent and took the south east. The emperor Claudius arrived in Colchester with reinforcements. Claudius appointed Plautius as Governor of Britain and returned to Rome.
In 43AD, a Roman force (artist's impression) of 40,000 led by Aulus Plautius landed in Kent and took the south east. The emperor Claudius then arrived in Colchester with reinforcements
47AD - Londinium (London) was founded and Britain was declared part of the Roman empire. Networks of roads were built across the country.
75 - 77AD - Romans defeated the last resistant tribes, making all Britain Roman. Many Britons started adopting Roman customs and law.
122AD - Emperor Hadrian ordered that a wall be built between England and Scotland to keep Scottish tribes out.
312AD - Emperor Constantine made Christianity legal throughout the Roman empire.
228AD - The Romans were being attacked by barbarian tribes and soldiers stationed in the country started to be recalled to Rome.
410AD - All Romans were recalled to Rome and Emperor Honorious told Britons they no longer had a connection to Rome.
Source: History on the net
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/science...y-AD-broken-two-perfectly-fitting-halves.html
The top half of the jigsaw vessel was initially found just weeks before the bottom half, which lay around 30 ft away and was uncovered on a subsequent visit.
Believed to date back to the second century AD, the pot features a cross-hatching design across its base...
Walker discovers half of 2,000-year-old Roman pot on a muddy beach then finds the other half five weeks later just 30ft away
The top half of the vessel was initially found five weeks prior to the bottom half
It is believed to date back to between 140 AD to the mid third century AD
The history buff who found it has been offered £2,000 by a private collector
However, he intends to donate the unique historical find to a museum
By Tim Collins For Mailonline
19 October 2018
A Roman clay pot thought to be at least 1,800 years old has been discovered broken into two perfectly fitting halves on a muddy beach.
The top half of the jigsaw vessel was initially found just weeks before the bottom half, which lay around 30 ft away and was uncovered on a subsequent visit.
Believed to date back to the second century AD, the pot features a cross-hatching design across its base.
A Roman clay pot thought to be at least 1,800 years old has been discovered broken into two perfectly fitting halves on a muddy beach
Father-of-two Steve Tomlinson, 47, was out for a stroll on the beach when he came across a piece of pottery sticking out of the ground.
Roman history enthusiast Mr Tomlinson was delighted when he realised he had discovered the top half of a Roman pot.
Five weeks later Mr Tomlinson, an ecologist, visited the beach again to see what else he could find - and his disbelief was compounded when he found the bottom half stuck in mud a stone's throw away.
Sure enough, when stunned Mr Tomlinson jigsawed the two pieces together back at home, they fit perfectly and formed a complete Roman clay pot.
The top half of the jigsaw vessel was initially found just weeks before the bottom half, which lay around 30 ft (9m) away and was uncovered on a subsequent visit
Mr Tomlinson, from Birchington, Kent, said he 'couldn't believe' his find and has since been offered £2,000 for it by a private collector.
However, he won't accept the offer for the six-inch-tall pot, which was found on a beach on the Thames Estuary, Kent, as he believes it holds significant archaeological value and deserves to be in a museum.
The pot is a piece of black burnished ware pottery - a type of ceramic made and distributed in the Thames Estuary area between 140 AD through to the mid third century.
Believed to date back to the second century AD, the pot features a cross-hatching design across its base
Father-of-two Steve Tomlinson, 47, was out for a stroll on the beach when he came across a piece of pottery sticking out of the ground
Mr Tomlinson, from Birchington, Kent, said he 'couldn't believe' his find and has since been offered £2,000 for it by a private collector
Mr Tomlinson said: 'I just couldn't believe it - to find the two pieces weeks apart is a one in a million chance.
'I'm into archaeology, but I was down there just mooching around - I hadn't gone to the Estuary to look for anything. But, there it was.
'I just don't believe it, what are the chances?
'When you go to museums, everything is behind glass. When I found this I thought to myself the last person to touch this was alive 2,000 years ago.
'I will report this to the finds liaison officer, and if it's of specific interest, I would consider giving it to a museum to share our heritage.
'I've had an offer of £2,000 from a private collector, but for me it's not about the money. It's about the archaeological value, the historical value.
'It's not about money. It's about what we can learn from this piece of history.'
Jo Ahmet, finds liaison officer for Kent said he only sees reports of whole pots being found two or three times a year.
He said: 'A complete pot is not hugely common. I've only had two this year.
'This pot is quite large too, which makes it unusual. Other complete pots tend to be tea-cup size.'
WHEN DID THE ROMANS OCCUPY BRITAIN?
55BC - Julius Caesar crossed the channel with around 10,000 soldiers. They landed at a beach in Deal and were met by a force of Britons. Caesar was forced to withdraw.
54BC - Caesar crossed the channel with 27,000 infantry and cavalry. Again they landed at deal but were unopposed. They marched inland and after hard battles they defeated the Britons and key tribal leaders surrendered.
However, later that year, Caesar was forced to return to Gaul to deal with problems there and the Romans left.
54BC - 43BC - Although there were no Romans present in Britain during these years, their influence increased due to trade links.
43AD - A Roman force of 40,000 led by Aulus Plautius landed in Kent and took the south east. The emperor Claudius arrived in Colchester with reinforcements. Claudius appointed Plautius as Governor of Britain and returned to Rome.
In 43AD, a Roman force (artist's impression) of 40,000 led by Aulus Plautius landed in Kent and took the south east. The emperor Claudius then arrived in Colchester with reinforcements
47AD - Londinium (London) was founded and Britain was declared part of the Roman empire. Networks of roads were built across the country.
75 - 77AD - Romans defeated the last resistant tribes, making all Britain Roman. Many Britons started adopting Roman customs and law.
122AD - Emperor Hadrian ordered that a wall be built between England and Scotland to keep Scottish tribes out.
312AD - Emperor Constantine made Christianity legal throughout the Roman empire.
228AD - The Romans were being attacked by barbarian tribes and soldiers stationed in the country started to be recalled to Rome.
410AD - All Romans were recalled to Rome and Emperor Honorious told Britons they no longer had a connection to Rome.
Source: History on the net
https://www.dailymail.co.uk/science...y-AD-broken-two-perfectly-fitting-halves.html
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