London is in a constant state of rediscovering itself. While we're now uncovering the graffiti of Victorian workers in the Tate Britain, Victorian workers were finding Roman houses in Billingsgate. Even 16th century writer John Stowe was in awe at the unearthing of Roman urns and bones — waxing lyrical about the "great nailes of Iron... there found... being each of them as bigge as a mans finger."

Here is a potted history of things dug up from the London clay. We are, naturally, only raking the surface.