Great Fire stock brick

This is one of many bricks from the cellar floor of a shop on Pudding Lane, which had burnt down during the Great Fire of London in 1666. The shop, on the site of Peninsular House, was excavated by archaeologists in 1979. Some fascinating information about the fire was gained during this work. The bricks were scorched by the fire. On their surface are the remains of pitch from barrels, which stood on the floor. The barrels had been full of pitch, a tar-like substance used for waterproofing boats. Pitch is highly combustible. This shop was only a couple of doors away from the bakery where the fire started. Once these barrels of pitch caught fire they would have spread the fire to warehouses along the Thames. The warehouses were also filled with inflammable materials, such as hemp, coal, timber, wine and oil. From here the fire raged out of control along the wharves and was driven by the wind into the City.