Who is behind it?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
My name is Tom Chivers. I have been exploring hidden landscapes and their histories for as long as I can remember and a few years ago I wrote a book about the subject<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Photo by Jason Sandy<\/p>\n\n\n\n I first received a permit to search the Thames foreshore in June 2020. What began as a lockdown hobby has become a way of life and, since 2022, the focus of my postgraduate research<\/a>. I live in Rotherhithe, near the river, with my two daughters.<\/p>\n\n\n\n The purpose of the collection is to create an enduring record of the things I have found on the Thames foreshore and to share the historical knowledge they reveal about London and its river in the past.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Thames mudlarks are required by the terms of their license to report finds to their local museum or heritage organisation, who then record significant objects on the Portable Antiquities Scheme<\/a> (PAS) database. This is an important resource for the recording and sharing of tangible cultural heritage recovered by amateur finders. However the PAS has limited capacity<\/a> and most finds are not recorded if they do not meet the criteria in terms of age or perceived significance.<\/p>\n\n\n\n This collection allows me to share a broader variety of finds than the 17 which I have had recorded on the PAS (although it is still, in its own, way a selective representation). Many of the objects that you will find on this website are mundane traces of the social and working lives of Londoners in the past. A great number are broken or damaged. And some of them are very recent deposits – the archaeology of the future.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Entries are organised by object type, period, material and find spot. In most cases I follow PAS category definitions, although at present only key data, when known, are included.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Many entries include references to similar objects recorded on the PAS or elsewhere. Where relevant I also include personal or contextual information about the object or its discovery.<\/p>\n\n\n\n Although many objects recovered from the Thames foreshore are found out of context in unstratified deposits, the location of a find remains a key part of the historical information it contains. For this reason I have included a broad location for each entry, although at present I have decided not to share precise findspots.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I endeavour to provide accurate identification of objects, their material(s) and broad dating. Where I am not sure, I say so.<\/p>\n\n\n\n I welcome feedback and interaction so if you have additional information about an entry, or notice an error, please leave a comment.<\/p>\n\n\n\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" London Searcher is a digital collection of objects, materials and (occasionally) structures found on the Thames foreshore by a licensed mudlark. The name is a nod to the customs officers or ‘searchers’ appointed from the late 13th century to examine goods for import or export at the Custom House. Who is behind it? My name […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-2","page","type-page","status-publish","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2"}],"version-history":[{"count":35,"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":564,"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/pages\/2\/revisions\/564"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}![\"Photo](\"https:\/\/londonsearcher.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/03\/3b3c0798-6fce-4de7-85a2-9cd8e2c68858-1024x768.jpg\")
<\/figure>\n\n\n\nWhat is its purpose?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
How is the collection organised?<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
A note on locations<\/h3>\n\n\n\n
Identification and dating of objects<\/h3>\n\n\n\n