In May 2012, a member of the public reported that a small wreck had eroded out of the beach at Goodwick Sands. The wreck was subsequently visited by Dyfed Archaeological Trust and found to be generally aligned west/east although it was not possible to identify the bow and stern. The tops of frames and runs of planking and ceiling planking were exposed along one side, enough to estimate the length of the vessel to be around 12m (40ft) and the width to be no more than 5m (16ft). The tops of a line of vertical posts down the centre of the vessel were also exposed. The wreck was recovered by the shifting sands within a few days.

The site was re-visited by the RCAHMW on 05/11/21 as part of the CHERISH Project and was found to be visible, with similar exposure to that seen in 2012. Two timber posts, 140-150mm square and 1.8m centre-to-centre, were visible in the centre of the site. Further smaller posts, 110-120mm square, on 0.5-0.6m centre-to-centre spacing lie on the same axis, three to the west, and five to the east. Outer planking was visible on the northern side of the wreck, c.40mm thick. A single wooden treenail was recorded fastening outer planking to frame - 30mm in diameter, with a plain head, and 170mm in length, driven blind. The tops of the exposed frames were too degraded to discern their arrangement, or dimensions. Buried outer-planks were identified at the western end, on the southern side of the keel line, brief exposure of these indicated they were cut at an angle, and may therefore be the plank hood-ends, adjacent to the stem/stern post.

A further RCAHMW visit took place on the 04/03/2022 during which a photogrammetry survey of the wreck was undertaken (links below). Another RCAHMW site visit occured on the 05/07/2023 to undertake a probe survey as a means to assess the likely extent of the buried remains. Probing at either end, and on either side, of the wreck indicated that the buried remains extended for 14.3m in length, with a maximum width of 4.3m. The same method demonstrated that there is around 1.25m of sediment depth in the centre of the wreck, beneath which there are further timber remains. This in turn suggests that a significant portion of the hull is preserved in the sand. The alignment of posts along the centre of the site may further indicate that the vessel is lying on its side, and that the posts are the ends of cross beams. Further investigation of the vessel structure within the beach is needed to confirm this.

The vessel was sampled by University of Wales Trinity Saint David (UWTSD) for dendrochronological analysis in 2016 in advance of proposed development (since abandoned) in the area. The samples included both framing and plank elements but did not produce a secure date. A further sub-sample, originally from a frame sample taken in 2016, was analysed in 2025 by Swansea University using oxygen isotope dating. This method proved successful and returned a felling date for the parent tree of AD 1588-1624. The practice in wooden shipbuilding of working timbers while 'green', soon after felling, means that the vessel was probably built within, or shortly after, the AD 1588-1624 date range. Further sampling of the hull structure is desirable to refine the current dating of the vessel, and to better understand the constructional sequencing and relationship of timbers within the ship.

Sources include:

Bale, R.J., Davies, D., McCarroll, D., Nayling, N., Loader N.J., 2025. Dendrochronology Report: Goodwick Wreck 1 framing timber. Unpublished interim report for RCAHMW.

Pers. Correspondence, James Meeks, Dyfed Archaeological Trust, 17 May 2012

RCAHMW site visit, 05/11/2021, 04/03/2022, 05/07/2023.

RCAHMW photogrammetry survey, PGS_2022_019, 04/03/2022. View here: https://skfb.ly/p7QYZ

J. Whitewright, RCAHMW, June 2025

CHERISH PROJECT 2017. Produced with EU funds through the Ireland Wales Co-operation Programme 2014-2020.