Divers Photograph 25 Features of 700-Year-Old Shipden Off Norfolk, Challenging Church Rock Legend
Updated
Updated · Fox News · Sep 27
Divers Photograph 25 Features of 700-Year-Old Shipden Off Norfolk, Challenging Church Rock Legend
2 articles · Updated · Fox News · Sep 27
Summary
First-known images from dives off Norfolk show 25 man-made seabed features believed to belong to Shipden, a medieval village swallowed by the North Sea about 700 years ago.
Volunteer BSAC divers mapped flint structures, cut stone and caisson-like foundations during unusually calm summer conditions after initially searching for remains of the 1888 wreck Victoria.
Some of the submerged walls still stand eight to 10 stone layers high, but researchers say the exact purpose of several structures remains unconfirmed.
Church Rock, long tied by local legend to St. Peter's Church, may instead be part of medieval sea defenses, leaving the lost church's location unresolved.
Shipden had 117 residents in 1086 and later vanished from records as the area became known as Cromer; researchers are now matching the finds with medieval documents.