Castle Street ceramics help shed light on Commercial Wharf finds

Since then, Society members have been working hard to identify the finds they recovered. In particular, the ceramics are being examined to find out where they were originally made and at what date.

The Box holds large collections of locally excavated pottery from archaeological sites including Castle Street. This excavation (1959-1969) surprised and surpassed expectations, exposing over a ton of pottery from a historic communal refuse tip. It’s recognised nationally as having one of the most important collections of imported post-medieval ceramics.

Examples from the Castle Street excavations are now being used to help with the identification of the Commercial Wharf pottery sherds. Sessions at The Box are enabling Society members to examine and compare the many different types. As with the pottery from Castle Street, Commercial Wharf is confirming that ceramics were arriving in Plymouth from many parts of Britain as well as Continental Europe.