In December 2023 Archaeopress published London’s Waterfront and its World, 1666 to 1800 by John Schofield and Stephen Freeth. This presents the archaeology and documentary history of the waterfront of the City of London in the century and a half after the Great Fire of 1666. This was when London became the hub of the new British empire, but contributed to the exploitation of people of other lands known as slavery. Evidence of this came from the excavations: cowrie shells from the Indian ocean, which were used to buy African slaves, were found on the floors of warehouses of about 1700 excavated on the Billingsgate site in Lower Thames Street in the City in 1982. This is the first archaeological finding of these shells in historic deposits in Britain. Get the book from online bookshops or Archaeopress, £50 hardback.
Welcome to the CoLAT website
The City of London Archaeological Trust (CoLAT) is a charity whose purpose is to support and initiate archaeological work in the City of London and its environs.
The Trust supports all kinds of archaeological work and the exhibition of archaeological sites. We prefer to concentrate on education and research, especially publication, within or in addition to existing research frameworks; but assistance with survey and excavation projects may be requested.
Many of the projects supported by CoLAT are large multi-stage research and publication projects which require additional funding for completion. We welcome donations from individuals and organisations who want to contribute to the archaeological and historical study of London.
**NEW: we are hosting a page about the activities of the London & Middlesex Archaeological Society. Click the LAMAS link at the top or in the footer at the bottom of this page to find it.
