In a significant development, three new shipwrecks have been uncovered on Portmarnock Strand beach in Dublin.
The wrecks, which became exposed due to a shifting sandback, could possibly be the remains of a 19th century fishing trawler, according to a release by the Department of Housing, Local Government and Heritage.
The vessel, which has been recorded in the Wreck Inventory of Ireland, was last visible in 2017.
An inspection was carried out by the National Monuments Service (NMS) following a report from Nigel Motyer, who captured aerial images of the wreck.
Karl Brady, an NMS archaeologist who led the inspection, explained: “Prolonged periods of wind from a particular direction move beach sands constantly and, in this case, had temporarily stripped the southern end of the beach of sand leading to the exposure of these wrecks.”
According to Brady, the ongoing analysis of the materials, size and construction style of the vessel will help determine the identity of the wrecks.
About 50 wrecks have been recorded for the Portmarnock/Baldoyle area in the Wreck Inventory through research carried out by NMS.
Brady said most of the vessels recorded off Portmarnock Strand were lost during bad or stormy weather.
“Several of the ships, en route to Dublin, may have attempted to seek refuge in Howth Harbour during stormy conditions but failed to reach the safety of the harbour entrance and were compelled to run ashore on the strand, a desperate measure to save lives,” Brady said.
“Other ships, originating from ports on the west coast of Britain and bound for various global destinations, seem to have been unfortunate victims of stormy weather, driven ashore at Portmarnock, often at night. There is an unusually high number of wrecks in this location,” he added.