The 'discover' programme

We have teamed up with the Museum of London Archaeology Service to run the ‘discover’ programme. Exciting artefacts have been found that tell us a lot about the area’s past and we want to share this history with the people who live there now.

Educate

We have been working with pupils in the Host Borough schools to explore archaeology and share what we have found on the Olympic Park. University students who are studying archaeology courses in east London will also get the chance to do a work placement with the ‘discover’ team.


Three weeks of activities were held on Hackney’s East Marsh in the summer, where over 450 young people came to learn more about archaeology and local history. Sessions included a ‘blanket dig’ and the opportunity to handle and clean real artefacts.

Latest events

The ‘discover’ team will talk about the archaeology finds from the Park with local residents and interest groups as part of a series of community events in the next few months. Find out more

Archaeological finds on the Olympic Park

An early nineteenth century wooden boat was discovered at the junction of the Pudding Mill River and River Lea on the Olympic Stadium site. This boat was potentially used on a larger boat or small ship as a fast, elegant water taxi. It was later rebuilt to transport guns for wild fowling on the lower River Lea.

Other items found

Other items that have been found on the Park site include:
fourth century pottery, a medieval wooden river wall, a Roman
coin from AD 330-335, World War II helmets and remains
of a Bronze Age hut at least 2,000 years old.

Four skeletons have been found in separate graves. The human remains are thought to be of Iron Age but have been removed for further investigation by the Museum of London.


Four gun emplacements were constructed in 1941 and fitted with 4.5 inch guns. They were updated in 1944 with bigger guns, probably in response to the threat from flying bombs (the doodle bugs), and formed part of London’s Inner
Artillery Zone.