Geology Site Account
Castle Point District, Canvey Island Mammoth tooth
Canvey Island was formerly salt marsh and was reclaimed from the waters of the Thames in the 7th century. The surface geology consists of over 30 metres (100 feet) thickness alluvium, the name given to recent river silt and mud. Therefore the existence in Southend Central Museum of a fine mammoth tooth from Canvey Island is surprising as mammoths became extinct in Britain at least 12,000 years ago. It may have been dredged from the bed of the Thames near Canvey Island.
Geology Site Map
Canvey Island was formerly salt marsh and was reclaimed from the waters of the Thames in the 7th century. The surface geology consists of over 30 metres (100 feet) thickness alluvium, the name given to recent river silt and mud. Therefore the existence in Southend Central Museum of a fine mammoth tooth from Canvey Island is surprising as mammoths became extinct in Britain at least 12,000 years ago. It may have been dredged from the bed of the Thames near Canvey Island.
The specimen was obtained by the museum in the 1930s but nothing else is known about it.
The mammoth tooth from Canvey Island on display in Southend Central Museum. Photo: G. Lucy
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Geology Site Map