A SWANAGE family came across hidden mystery items whilst out on a morning dog walk at Middle Beach - and they believe they found treasure.

Charlotte Greasty, her husband Tom, and two sons, Lawrence, 8, and Oatis, 5 were walking their dog along Swanage Beach with their two sons when they spotted buried relics in the sand.

Tom Greasty is also a director and owner of Swanage Sea Fishing along with Charlotte who is the marketing and accounts manager.  

Glass bottles, Victorian perfume bottles, and a large pot were among the washed-up items.

The family often visits Swanage Beach to walk their cocker spaniel, Luna.

Bournemouth Echo:

Charlotte said: “We chose to go to Middle Beach because we hadn't been for a while.  

“It was the first nice day or calm day after all the horrible weather that we'd had.

“We walked all the way along to the ferry and on our way back, the tide was going out all the time.

“I found a bottle which was a United Dairy's milk bottle.

“My boys seemed to find one at the same time, a brown one, another milk bottle.”

"We were totally blown away by our beach finds.”

Tom Cousins, a diving and maritime archaeology officer at Bournemouth University, said: “From the looks of it the glass bottles are all 19th -20th Century with some more modern glass bottles.

“The large jug is Verwood so it could be as old as the 18th Century, but it looks like it’s been rolling around on the seabed for a while.”

Charlotte added: “We all just started wading through the shallow water because there was some broken glass.

“We were clearing up some of the broken glass then I turned around and my husband pulled out this huge pot.”

The National Trust also visited the beach and spoke to Charlotte and her family.

She added: “The National Trust came down to the beach because they were probably going to be concerned at the amount of broken glass.

“Apparently it has happened before after a bad storm when the storm disrupts the sand dunes.

“We'll definitely be walking there more often.

“It was just a really gorgeous day, and some other people were starting to try and find some little jars and stuff, taking them on home.”

The items were found on November 11.