Chinese student Zhang Shengjia went to study in London, England, and accidentally found someone "picking up junk" in the silt of the Thames beach.
After in-depth understanding, he found that this kind of "picking rubbish" by the Thames River used to be a profession hundreds of years ago, and many poor children made a living from it. The British called it "mudlarking".
With the development of the times, no one now relies on "picking up rubbish" on the Thames beach for a living, but this activity has evolved into a kind of amateur archaeology.
Zhang Shengjia also joined the ranks of "picking up rubbish" by the Thames. He found Feng Shui money brought by Chinese immigrants, and also found many pieces of Chinese-style "Qingliu porcelain" produced in Britain.
He turned these objects into a graduation project and recently held an exhibition.
Ziniu News reporter talked to Zhang Shengjia and listened to him tell an interesting story of his "muddy treasure hunt" by the Thames.
Ziniu News reporter Song Shifeng Video source: provided by the interviewee
How does the "treasure" profession hunt for treasure?
From humble jobs to amateur archaeology
'Muddy treasure hunt' comes to life
Zhang Shengjia is from Chaoshan, Guangdong, and majored in interior design in college.
In 2020, he went to London, England to study for a master's degree in Fine Art.
During that time, the new crown epidemic in the UK was relatively serious, and there was nowhere to go. He felt relatively bored. Every day, he stood on the balcony watching the ebb and flow of the Thames downstairs, and stumbled upon someone searching for something on the beach.
Zhang Shengjia has been interested in waste objects since he was a child, and likes to find materials and research objects from them, so he has a deep understanding and found that these people are doing "mudlarking".
London is an ancient city with a history of more than 2,000 years. The Thames River passes through the city. For thousands of years, it has become a place for residents to dispose of garbage. There are items deposited in the mudflats of this river in all ages. inside.
Since the silt is anaerobic, the items buried inside are well preserved.
Affected by the sea, the Thames River has tides in the morning and evening, with a drop of 7 meters. Under the impact of the tide, some garbage debris is turned over every day.
After the industrial revolution began in the 18th century, a large number of poor people in London lived on both sides of the Thames, and some people dig valuable things in the mud of the river beach.
At that time, the "muddy treasure hunters" were mainly poor children, who could only move around the river and scavenge waste when the tide receded.
In fact, "muddy treasure hunting" on Thames beaches was a legal profession until the early 1900s.
There was a prejudice against the profession in Britain before, and the 1861 publication "London Labour and the London Poor" called "muddy treasure hunters" "people who don't want to work".
Today, the "muddy treasure hunt" on the Thames continues, but it is no longer the poor children who are "picking up junk" to make a living.
Instead, they are people with a passion for urban history and archaeology.
Because the silt of the Thames has buried things that fell into it for more than 2,000 years, it is considered one of the richest archaeological sites in the UK and possibly one of the largest in the world.
Because things in the silt may be carried into the sea by the tide and disappear forever, the London Museum also encourages citizens to hunt for treasures on the Thames Beach.
If you want to go treasure hunting, you need to apply for a permit
Do not work rough when digging
Zhang Shengjia learned about these interesting histories, so he also joined the "muddy treasure hunt".
He told reporters that the "muddy treasure hunt" has detailed regulations.
The Thames is still a busy waterway to this day, and the beach is managed by the Port of London Authority. If you want to "muddy treasure hunt" here, you need to apply for a permit from the authority.
It can be seen on the official website of the Port of London Authority that a 3-year "muddy treasure hunt" license requires a fee of £96, a monthly permit fee of £42, and discounts for children.
With a permit, you can't search at will, you must be in a specified area, and there are requirements for the excavation depth, generally no more than 7.5 cm (3 inches).
The digging action should also be gentle, and rough work is prohibited.
After the soil is dug out, it needs to be filled up, so that no obvious traces can be left.
The Port of London Authority said this was to "protect the food chain of the riverbank and the health of all life in the Thames region."
Any discovery of valuable or archaeological value during a "muddy treasure hunt" must be reported to the Movable Artifacts Program Find Liaison Officer at the Museum of London, and the location and depth of the discovery should be noted and the item taken for assessment , after the museum has researched it for a period of time, it will be returned to the discoverer.
If you are not reporting, you can take pictures and take notes, but leave the items where they are.
Some "muddy treasure hunters" also have more specialized tools, such as metal detectors.
But you can't use magnets for treasure hunting because the Thames is a waterway and magnets may interfere with shipping.
There is also a more professional "muddy treasure hunt" license, which needs to be issued by the museum. Zhang Shengjia said that there may only be dozens of people who hold the license, and they can go to more areas to dig deeper.
Danger and glamour go hand in hand!
Treasure hunt Thames is dangerous
The tide is rising and it's almost impossible to get ashore
"Muddy treasure hunting" on the Thames also has certain dangers. The river has a large tidal drop, rapid waves and cold water, and the river channel is somewhat curved. The place leading to the sea outlet is very narrow. Only the two hours at low tide are considered relatively safe. "If If you don’t observe carefully, the tide will rise all of a sudden, and you may encounter danger.” Zhang Shengjia told reporters that many areas of the river beach are muddy, and if you step on it, your entire leg may sink in. Once he fell into it, With the help of a friend, I got out of trouble.
The Port of London Authority also warned of the risk of being stabbed by nails or broken glass in mudflats, as well as contracting diseases such as Weill's disease, which is spread by rats.
Zhang Shengjia has been picking up junk on the Thames beach for two years, and has found ruby rings from the 1930s, combs from the Victorian era, and mosaic floor tiles from the Roman era.
But more is worthless garbage, such as IKEA forks, broken mug handles, beer bottles, old mobile phones, etc.
Animal teeth can often be found on river beaches. Zhang Shengjia said that this has something to do with the city history of London, because in history the British used to build slaughterhouses and other facilities by the river, so that sewage and garbage could be discharged directly into the river.
He had picked up Chinese "feng shui money" on the beach, apparently brought to the UK by the Chinese.
Special "Qingliu Porcelain" Fragments
"Telling" stories not seen in museums
The most interesting discovery of the "muddy treasure hunt" is that he found a lot of blue and white porcelain fragments.
At first he did not know the complete appearance of the porcelain and thought it was broken Chinese porcelain.
One day, he bought a complete blue-and-white porcelain plate on the second-hand market in London. It was a modern industrial product produced in 1990. The pattern was the same as the fragments he picked up, and he began to study this kind of porcelain.
He discovered that this kind of porcelain is called "Blue Willow" (Blue Willow), which is an industrial porcelain produced by the British in the 18th century imitating the style of Chinese blue and white porcelain.
Driven by the Industrial Revolution, "Qingliu Porcelain" was copied and produced in large quantities in the UK, and gradually entered thousands of households.
On the contrary, today, because the labor force in the United Kingdom is getting more and more expensive, the "Qingliu porcelain" produced locally is slowly disappearing.
Some fragments of "Qingliu Porcelain" picked up by Zhang Shengjia have been washed smoothly by the river.
However, this type of porcelain is still very popular today, and many British households have one or two sets.
He put the pieces of "Qingliu Porcelain" he found together with the complete plate of "Qingliu Porcelain", and found some people who used old video clips of "Qingliu Porcelain" to make a graduation project, named "Made in England". The implication is that the pattern was influenced by Chinese porcelain, but was designed and produced by Britain itself.
After the works were exhibited, most Chinese visitors did not understand "Qingliu Porcelain" porcelain, while British people are basically familiar with it because it is a daily necessities in Britain.
Objects such as "Qingliu Porcelain" fragments are very inconspicuous on the Thames beach, but Zhang Shengjia believes that they can reveal many stories that cannot be seen in museums.
With the help of the Industrial Revolution, the British imagination of the exotic East became the porcelain plates on the table of the people. Later, they became fragments and were thrown into the Thames River. After years of washing, they appeared on the beach and were picked up by a Chinese student. , make a graduation project.