>> The phrase one person's trash
is another's treasure certainly
applies to author Laura Meikle,
who spends her spare time
scouring the shores of London's
river Thames.
She is what is known as a mud
marker, and has written a book
explaining her passion for this
unusual pastime.
Our own British treasure,
Malcolm brevet, joined her in
the mud.
>> Blew tide at greenwich, one
of London's most historic temp
side districts.
For two hours, it is safe to
explore.
The rivers sure, the section
revealed between times.
Natures scavengers get a taste
of what is washed up.
Drawn beneath the high
watermarks, treasure hunters
with metal detectors.
And someone else who relies on
nothing else.
>> My name is Laura makem, I am
a mother.
>> She searches for history.
Looking for lost and found
things.
>> To the untrained eyes, it is
unremarkable.
But not to her.
>> This is ordinary utility
where.
This is where they have the
handle attached.
Part of a big jug for pouring
out in the kitchens and serving
area.
>> The palace no longer exists.
Standing in its stead is the
maritime museum.
This was the domain of England's
king Henry the eighth, requiring
six wives.
16th-century was greenwich
meantime.
Beheading was more convenient
than divorce.
He also had a mean appetite.
>> Even bits like this, it would
have been food, this is domestic
waste.
So we have a rib bone.
This could have been part of one
of his feasts.
Chomping away on that rib.
>> Pin sharp vision is required
to spot the most mundane items.
Bringing to life.
>> These are handmade pins.
Buttons were expensive, we did
not have them like we did today.
>> Do you think you are going to
rich doing this?
>> I'm never going to get rich
doing this.
I try and avoid the word
treasure because it makes people
think I want gold, and I'm not.
It tells a better story.
>> What is my favorite find?
It has to be this.
It is a child's shoe.
About 500 or 600 years old.
When I pulled it out of the mud,
it was in perfect condition.
I looked inside and I can see
the impression of its original
owners toes and heel in it.
We will never know who owned the
shoe, but it tells the story of
ordinary people in London.
A little boy or little girl
running across the mud, perhaps
bullied and somebody had thrown
it into the river.
Or maybe it wore out and they
threw it away.
>> Besides broken relics, the
river also spits out 20 trash.
On this day, the air was
untainted by the stench of
sewage polluting the river more
frequently as London grows
apace.
>> It is affected by the rhythm
of the tide, it is coming in.
Every 12 hours it takes place,
bringing a new delivery of
London's history.
Here is something that is 2000
years old.
>> These objects don't really
come alive until you find out
what they are.
Then you get this life to them.
This looks boring, but it is a
chunk of Roman floor.
It is beautifully polished.
You can imagine the feet that
passed over this.
This sort of smoothness.
The great things about the river
is the mud is anaerobic, there
is no oxygen in it.
It preserves organic material
perfectly.
This little cone is made of
boxwood.
It is broken inside.
One side would be for getting
out the parasites, the others
for styling hair.
>> Do you have a holy grail as
something you would want to
find?
>> I did, it was a holy relic.
I wanted to find a medieval
pilgrim badge.
I searched for 20 years for a
complete medieval pilgrim badge.
I've only found pieces of it.
A couple of years ago, I finally
found one.
This medieval pilgrim would have
gone down to a pilgrimage,
bought it.
They were cheap.
They may have rubbed it against
a shrine.
>> Over the past 20 years, the
river has been revitalized, but
there is a price to pay.
>> This is the remains of a
mid-evil jetty associated with
Henry the eighth's palace.
Unlawful lot on the river being
lost, a lot of archaeology.
You will see the amount of wake
that comes in.
That is what is eroding the
shore and taking all of this
away with it.
>> The remains of the mid-evil
jetty are swallowed by.
But they will reappear 12 hours
later when the river provides
the next opportunity.
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