England's Historic Seascapes: Withernsea to Skegness
Museum of London Archaeology, 2010. https://doi.org/10.5284/1000104. How to cite using this DOI
Data copyright © Historic England unless otherwise stated
This work is licensed under the ADS Terms of Use and Access.
Primary contact
David
Bowsher
Director of Research
Museum of London Archaeology
Mortimer Wheeler House
46 Eagle Wharf Road
London
N1 7ED
UK
Tel: 020 7410 2285
Resource identifiers
- ADS Collection: 935
- ALSF Project Number: 4730
- DOI:https://doi.org/10.5284/1000104
- How to cite using this DOI
West Hole Character Area
Present Day Form
The West Hole character area is situated at the east southern part of the study area. The geology of the area is a complex anticline of Jurassic and Triassic bedrock overlain by glacial till (clay, sand and gravel debris deposited from ice sheets) known as the Elbow formation. The water depth across the area is generally around 30m. The maximum tidal range is c 3m. The seabed of the area consists of a north south running shallow ridges of gravely sand and sand. The character area contains two smaller operating gas fields Sean and Orwell. The area is a major navigation route for North Sea traffic.
Sea Use: Present
The West Hole character area is an active navigation route and fishing area. Trawling is carried out for white fish. The Orwell gas field is a medium sized field discovered in 1990 with 8 billion cubic metres of reserves linked by pipeline to Bacton gas terminal in Norfolk.
Sea Use: Past
The West Hole character area has been shaped by thousands of years of dynamic sea level changes and erosion and deposition. The relatively shallow nature of the sea bed means that the area was dry land almost certainly in the Upper Palaeolithic, Mesolithic and probably in the Neolithic periods. Marine traffic would have crossed this area on a regular basis from the Roman period onwards using the deep water channel across the area. This deep was historically one of the famous fisheries first discovered during the early smack fishing days of the 19th century. These fisheries were exploited from Hull and Grimsby fishing the deep water holes and guts such as Tea Pot Hole and Ribs and Truck Pit. The area is also a named fishing ground, West Hole, on Close's Fisherman's Chart (UKHO 1953) and is described as good ground for Plaice haddock and Soles. The area was also an important herring fishery.
Archaeological Potential
The West Hole character area has potential for the presence of drowned land surfaces resulting from the fact that sea level has fluctuated between -120m and +10m over the past 500,000 years. From the period 500,000 BP to 22,000 BP (before present), human population levels were low, and little more than stray finds may be expected, although these may still be of considerable archaeological importance.
From 22,000 BP to 2100 BP parts of the North Sea were dry land and human population levels were higher, especially in the Mesolithic age. Finds dating to the Mesolithic have been found to a depth of 40m so any area of sea bed above that has potential for habitation.
Inundation of the North Sea landscapes occurred between 10,000 and 6,000 BP and the most likely evidence for human occupation would be, therefore, Mesolithic in date. Earlier Palaeolithic occupation is less likely to be found and later Neolithic occupation is likely to have been limited to the inshore and very highest of the banks and shoals such as the Dogger Bank. The areas position in the central North Sea plain show there is some potential for surviving evidence of human activity.
Over the last 6000 years (if not more), humans have used sea faring vessels and so wrecks and related material may lie on the sea floor or be buried beneath the sea floor. UKHO and NMR data show no unnamed or named wreck in this area.
Character Perceptions
The area is perceived as an offshore fishing ground and also as a gas production area.
References
Close's Fisherman's Chart (UKHO 1953)
Fisheries Sensitivity Maps in British Waters (MAFF 1989)
