Underwater Archaeology on Foot: a Systematic Rapid Foreshore Survey on the North Kent Coast, England

Foreshore archaeology can be considered 'underwater archaeology on foot', because it is possible to investigate the archaeological heritage at low tide without the need for diving. Rising sea-levels, increasing coastal erosion and the loss of important foreshore environments make immediate action necessary. In 2005, Wessex Archaeology was commissioned by Kent County Council, supported by English Heritage, to continue a Rapid Coastal Zone Assessment Survey on the North Kent Coast as part of a project started in 2001. In four weeks 378 monuments were updated and 198 new monuments recorded, among them a submerged forest, a trackway, several fish-traps and shipwrecks.
© 2007 The Authors