The Mortar Wreck Conservation Statement and Management Plan

This document is a plan for the conservation and management of the ‘Mortar Wreck‘, a large, mid-13th century, cargo vessel wrecked in Studland Bay in the approaches to Poole Harbour, Dorset.

Although marked as a charted obstruction since 1982, the site was first identified as a site of significance in 2019 by archaeologists from Bournemouth University, who noted a large pile of quarried stones surrounded by clinker timbers and several mortars made from Purbeck stone. Bournemouth University returned to the site in 2020 to conduct an undesignated site assessment. This revealed a large section of articulated hull under the stone mound, more mortars, and Purbeck Marble grave slabs. The surviving cargo points to the vessel being involved with the Purbeck stone trade, an industry which reached its peak in the 1250-1350s. Purbeck stone, in particular the marble, features heavily in medieval ecclesiastical architecture, with prominent uses including Westminster Abbey and Salisbury Cathedral.

The site was designated in June 2022.

Tom Cousins, Bournemouth University, prepared this document on behalf of Historic England.