Mystery Wreck Project (Flower of Ugie)

Archaeological diving work by HWTMA began on a shipwreck site in the Eastern Solent in 2004 following a report from a fisherman of a net snag on a previously unknown obstruction. Survey between 2004 and 2008 revealed the remains of a wooden shipwreck, lying in two large pieces with an additional area of dispersed remains. At the time, the identification of the vessel remained unknown. Due to the urgent need to establish the date and identity of the vessel to help determine its archaeological significance and develop sustainable long-term monitoring and management of the site, funding from the Aggregates Levy Sustainability Fund (ALSF), was awarded to the project. A program of investigation into the material characteristics of the vessel (dendrochronology, timber species analysis, metal analysis, ship structure, small finds) was undertaken and indicated an early/mid-19th century date. Historical research and correlation with the recorded shipwreck losses for a 10 km area around the site revealed that that shipwreck represented the remains of the Flower of Ugie. The Flower of Ugie was a sailing barque, built in Sunderland in 1838. The vessel had a successful fourteen year career sailing to destinations in South Asia, the Far East, the Mediterranean, Black Sea, Baltic and North America. The vessel was wrecked on the Horse Tail Sand in the Eastern Solent on 27th December 1852. Research into the vessel will result in the publication of a monograph in the Spring of 2011 and a management report that has been submitted to English Heritage