Wine buckets, bowls and dishes with an elegant beaded design are among a spectacular Roman hoard of international importance that has been discovered in London.

Archaeologists have unearthed more than 1,100 objects dating from the first to third centuries AD that they described yesterday as unprecedented in size and scale.

The finds, which will give dramatic new insight into Londinium, the Roman city, include the most complete timber door to have survived anywhere in the Roman Empire, as well as shiny metal vessels in an exceptional state of preservation and the large-scale remains of an entire Roman streetscape.

There is a service complete with buckets, large dishes, handled shallow bowls, a set of three nested bowls, an iron ladle and a trivet. Most are made of copper alloy and would have graced the dining table of a wealthy household. Even organic materials such as wood and leather have survived, while most of the metal is barely corroded. Some of the objects have swing handles that remain articulated after nearly 1,700 years.

The hoard was unearthed at Drapers Gardens, in Throgmorton Avenue near Moorgate. In Londinium, it was near the city’s walls and the amphitheatre. It had lain undisturbed about four metres below a 1960s, 26-storey, concrete tower-block that was pulled down this summer – the tallest structure to have been demolished in London.

The discovery was revealed yesterday by the Museum of London. Jenny Hall, its curator of Roman London, said: “These finds are amazing. I just couldn’t stop grinning when I first saw them. In size and scale they are simply unprecedented. Nothing like this has ever been found in London before, or anywhere else in Britain.”

Until the 1960s the land had remained largely undeveloped. The site’s waterlogged conditions ensured that the organic content, such as wood and leather, survived.

Mrs Hall said: “Metalwork too survives well in these conditions rather than corroding away and the good survival of these base metal vessels makes them much rarer than silver or gold tableware of the period, thus making this find one of both national and international importance. You can imagine them in someone’s kitchen or dining-room, gracing the table with food and drink.”

Nineteen metal vessels emerged from the bottom of a wood-lined well. Although they look like fine household objects, it is possible that the hoard may have had religious uses.

It is also possible that the objects were hidden by Roman Londoners fleeing tribes from Scotland, Ireland and Germany who were converging on Londinium. They may have planned to return to retrieve them.

Mrs Hall said: “These astonishingly well-preserved artefacts offer a rare glimpse into the last days of Londinium.”

Other finds include: the floors and wall foundations of wooden buildings, with timber pipes linked to roadside drains; a remarkably well-preserved timber-planked floor that is thought to be unknown for Roman London; a bear skull – perhaps from an animal that performed in the nearby amphitheatre; and a wooden carpenter’s ruler marked in Roman inches.

There is particular excitement about the door, which has its original hinge pivots.

Several ovens and kilns were also unearthed. They reflect industrial activity. Large amounts of leather and an immense assemblage of animal bone suggest that tanning work took place there.

The discovery was made by Chris Jarrett, an archaeologist with Pre-Construct Archaeology. “It’s my best find in 20 years of digging,” he said.

Gary Brown, of Pre-Construct Archaeology, has co-written a report on the discovery in the January/February issue of British Archaeology. He said: “Excavations at Drapers Gardens have just finished, and the critical work of unravelling the story from the field records with conservation and study of the finds has only just begun. But already it is clear that the project has been one of the most important of its kind.”

Some of the finds go on temporary display at the Museum of London from today until January 27. After extensive analysis they will eventually go on permanent show.

Developers will now be able to build an office and retail block on the site.

On the Thames

— The name Londinium is thought to have come from a word meaning “deep and flowing”, in reference to the Thames

— Its population at its height was 20,000 to 30,000 and, at the time of the finds, when it was in decline, 10,000 to 20,000

— Emperor Valentinian ruled at the time and sent General Theodosius to watch the tribes

— Contrary to popular belief, most people did not live in stone villas, but timber homes

— Dormice were a delicacy

— Much of the citizens’ food was eaten with their fingers

Source: Museum of London

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