Acropora cervicornis

A branching coral called Acropora cervicornis, commonly known as staghorn coral. Grey in colour. A few pointed branch tips are still present but most branches have broken off. Worn pieces of scleractinian coral colonies once grew in warm tropical seas, probably in the Caribbean Seas. Coral skeletons are formed of hard calcium carbonate which, once dead, gradually breaks down and contributes to the sandy beaches in the Caribbean. It has been suggested that boulders and pieces of coral were dredged from local harbours and used as ballast for ships returning to Liverpool & London. This ballast was then dumped in these ports. This coral may have been given as a gift or collected by children or other family members living in the Dock Master's and Pier Master's houses at Albert Parade where it was excavated from the garden in 2022. This object was excavated by Museum of Liverpool Archaeology and community volunteers during the Piermaster's Green Community Dig. The project investigated the homes of Dock Masters, Pier Masters and their families. Numbers 7, 8 and 10 Albert Parade were built by the Mersey Docks and Harbour Board in 1852 to accomidate staff for the Albert and Canning Docks. The houses were hit by an incendiary bomb during the Second World War.