Overview
- The first public display opens Friday at Flag Fen Archaeology Park near Peterborough, featuring three conserved boats from the Must Farm discoveries.
- The showcased pieces comprise a 6.3-metre Middle Bronze Age oak boat with internal charring, a 2.2-metre Middle Bronze Age oak fragment with an intricate hull repair, and a 0.8-metre Early Bronze Age fragment made of field maple.
- The boats were stabilised over 13 years in climate-controlled conditions using a specialised wax-and-water treatment to preserve the waterlogged wood.
- Archaeologists interpret the vessels as tools for navigating fenland waterways, laying fish traps, and transporting people, animals, and materials across centuries.
- Nine Bronze and Iron Age log boats were recovered from a silted-up creek at Must Farm in 2011–12, with excavation funded by landowner Forterra and conservation supported by Historic England and Peterborough City Council.