Yamestowne Tag

Lead

Date: Early 17th Century

Context: James Fort’s Second Well

This small shipping tag stamped “YAMES TOWNE” probably marked a container of goods once warehoused in England. It is the only excavated artifact that shows Jamestown as an address and represents the rising wealthy mercantile middle class in England.

In honor of Jamestown’s 400th anniversary and in tribute to the spirit of exploration, the tag flew aboard NASA’s Space Shuttle Atlantis to the International Space Station on June 8, 2007. The artifact returned to Jamestown 4 months later, after a trip covering 5,809,363 nautical miles!

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