In centuries past, the River Thames became London's sewer as industrial waste, human excrement and even murdered bodies were dumped into its murky waters.

But along with the mounds of foul-smelling rubbish which caused the Great Stink of 1858, historical treasures have also sunk to the river's depths.

Simon Bourne, 39, has spent nine years unearthing these riches by 'mudlarking' along the banks of the Thames, and has revealed his extraordinary haul.

An impressive collection of coins found by Mr Bourne on the banks of the Thames. The old money is still readable, and includes sixpences from 1907, 1919 and 1930. Two other coins bear the faces of monarchs Queen Victoria and King George V

Six years ago, Mr Bourne successfully reunited a man with a dog tag belonging to his grandfather that he had found on the banks. The tag bore the name N Posener (left) and was emblazoned with the Royal Flying Corp service number 19385 from the First World War. After sifting through the archives to find Nathan Posener (right) in the 1911 population census aged 18, he found that he had lived at 292 Commercial Road in Whitechapel, close to the spot he found the dog tag

The graphic designer, from London, explained how his interest in mudlarking piqued after stumbling across some pottery by accident.

He said: 'In 2011 I went to the Thames foreshore after a bike ride and started finding pottery. My interest increased from that moment and I returned and met up with like-minded people and realized there was much more to be found and it grew from there.

A collection of coins and medals found Mr Bourne, who said: 'I use my eyes, a metal detector, Wellies, a trowel or spade, and a Pinpointer, and spend four to eight hours a week searching'

To read the complete article, see:
500-year-old coins, a live World War II grenade, a Magnum revolver and HUMAN SKULLS: Mudlarker reveals extraordinary items he has unearthed from shoreline of the River Thames(https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-8818677/Mudlarker-reveals-extraordinary-items-unearthed-shoreline-River-Thames.html)