Cod bones reveal 13th Century origin of global fish trade

London's international fish trade can be traced back 800 years to the medieval period, according to new research published today in the journal Antiquity . The research, led by archaeologists from UCL, Cambridge and UCLan, provides new insight into the medieval fish trade and the globalisation of London's food supply. Archaeologists analysed data from nearly 3,000 cod bones found in 95 different excavations in and around London. They identified a sudden change in the origin of the fish during the early 13th century, indicating the onset of a large-scale import trade. Lead author Dr David Orton, UCL Institute of Archaeology, said: "It's a truly remarkable shift. We had expected a gradual increase in imports as demand grew along with the city's medieval population - thought to have quadrupled between AD 1100 and AD 1300 - but this is something else: evidence for locally caught cod drops off suddenly when the imports come in. "What did this mean for the local fishing industry? Until we've looked at other fish species and other towns we can't be sure, but the start of this long-range trade may well be an important message about changes in supply and demand." - It's a truly remarkable shift.