The three artefacts, each weighing around 70kg, were brought up by investigators working at Ørsted’s Hornsea 3 Offshore Wind Farm site off the Yorkshire coast.
Having been registered properly with the Receiver of Wreck, they will soon be on display at the Peak District Mining Museum in Matlock, Derbyshire – where it is thought the metal may have been dug from the ground.
The MCA was part of the group of organisations which worked together to bring the ingots home, including Ørsted’s Hornsea 3 team, site investigators MSDS Marine, and Historic England.
The collaboration ensured the wreck and its cargo were analysed and preserved before the ingots were safely exhibited to the public.
Andrea Bailey, MCA Deputy Receiver of Wreck, oversaw parts of the process. She said: "The waters off the UK are full of objects with fascinating histories that reveal more about the country's story.
“Registering maritime finds with the Receiver of Wreck mean objects can be reunited with their owners or be placed with a museum.
“By doing so, you can help share that history and ensure artefacts end up in the right place.”
The clue to the ingots’ possible origins lay in each being stamped with a different mark: ‘IS’, ‘EB’ and ‘H’.
The letters are similar to those on another wreck, of the Dutch East Indiaman Kennemerland (1664), discovered off the coast of the Shetland Islands.
It suggests the Hornsea 3 wreck, which lies directly beneath the Hull to Netherlands route, was possibly a Dutch vessel with a cargo of English lead, of which vast quantities were mined in Derbyshire and the Peak District.
Report wreck material here.
Main photo: The lead ingots are inspected
