Yorkshire’s lost ‘Atlantis’ nearly found, says Hull professor

There are hopes that the fabled medieval town of Atlantis will be found and will begin to give up secrets that have been held for more than 650 years.

Ravenser Odd was a prosperous port town built on sandbanks at the mouth of the Humber estuary before it was destroyed and submerged by a calamitous storm in 1362.

Ravenser Odd, one of the biggest places on the Holderness coast that have been lost over the centuries due to coastal erosion, was discovered by a professor on a family day out at Withernsea.

He talked to the historian and he said that the local lobster vessels had seen some changes on the surface.

The idea started to form when he read more about Ravenser Odd. High-resolution sonar systems are used by a scientist to better understand how sediments move around. He wondered if the story could be used to shine light on the coastal erosion threat faced by communities today, and if the equipment could be used to find the lost Atlantis.

A survey of an area off Spurn Point of about 10 hectares was done last year after money was raised for a research project. It did not find Ravenser Odd, but they were close, and a second survey will take place in two to three weeks.

He said that they think we were too far to the east.

It is hoped that money can be raised for archaeological exploration once it is located.

Ravenser Odd was founded in 1235 and is named after the Old Norse hrafn (raven's tongue). It became a town of national importance due to it's wharves, warehouses, court and prison. It collected dues from more than 100 merchant ships a year.

It had a seawall and a harbour.

The town was flooded by the middle of the 14th century because of coastal erosion. The town was completely submerged in the cold waters of the North Sea in 1362 after a terrible storm called the Mandrenke storm.

The story of Ravenser Odd could be used to educate people about the dangers posed by the climate crisis and coastal erosion, given the Holderness coast is one of the most rapidly eroding coastlines in the world, according to the director of the university's energy and environment institute.

He said that understanding the past helps us prepare better in the future.

Ravenser Odd is a story about the effects of coastal change on settlements.

I think it's a great way to start talking about the impacts of climate change long in to the future.