An “incredibly rare” wrought iron anchor thought to be up 2,000 years old is going on display for one day after being found at an offshore windfarm.

The anchor, believed to be Roman or late Iron Age, was found off the Suffolk coast in 2018 during survey work on the East Anglia One windfarm.

It will be on show for the first time at Ipswich Museum on Tuesday, before being moved for further analysis work.

Experts said it was an “incredibly rare, distinctive” anchor.

It was thought to have come from a 500-600 tonne vessel and was believed to be between 2,000 and 1,600 years old.

“Everything points to this being a Roman anchor of almost 2,000 years old; if this is confirmed it would be hard to overstate its significance,” said Brandon Mason from Maritime Archaeology Ltd.

“We only know about three pre-Viking anchors from northern European waters outside the Mediterranean region, and only two actually survived.

“We believe this find could be the oldest and one of the largest surviving examples, giving us hard evidence of the incredible amount of activity that must have been going on in the waters in Roman times, but that we know relatively little about.”

After its discovery, the anchor was protected by an exclusion zone installed on the seabed during construction work on the wind turbines.

Measuring two metres (6.5ft) long and weighing around 100kg (220lbs), the anchor was recovered from the North Sea in 2021.

Once the analysis and conservations works are complete, the anchor will go on permanent display in conjunction with Colchester and Ipswich Museums.

Although it has yet to be dated more precisely, archaeologists said there were several features that suggested it could come from the Imperial Roman period.

If confirmed, it would provide evidence of ancient Romans seafaring and trading in the southern North Sea, off the coast of the East of England.

The Imperial Roman period lasted from about 27BC to the late 3rd and 4th Century when the empire expanded, especially to the west.

In 54-55BC Julius Caesar tried to invade Britain, but failed, and then in AD43 the Roman army landed in Kent and began to conquer what is now England and Wales.

Scottish Power Renewables, which built the windfarm, said it made other finds during the work including a missing German submarine from World War One and an ancient wild cattle skull, which has been radiocarbon-dated to more than 6,000 years old.

The East Anglia One windfarm is located around 40km (25 miles) off the coast of Suffolk and will have 102 turbines when finished.

Authorities in Florida have urged residents to “make their preparations” as Tropical Storm Ian strengthened into a Category 1 hurricane early on Monday.

Ian was forecast to move northwest through the Caribbean, near Cuba and the Cayman Islands, and reach the state’s west coast by Wednesday.

The hurricane’s exact path is uncertain but Governor Ron DeSantis warned of “broad impacts throughout the state”.

Residents have been seen stocking up on food, water, medicine and fuel.

The National Hurricane Center (NHC) said it expects “rapid strengthening” from Ian over the next 48 hours, with maximum sustained winds of 75mph (121kmph).

An NHC official said Cuba could experience “extreme hurricane force winds, life threatening storm surge and heavy rainfall” later on Monday.

Classes have been cancelled in parts of the island, and evacuations have been planned in a handful of western provinces, including near the country’s tobacco region.

Authorities in the Cayman Islands, a British territory, are working to provide plywood, sandbags and other supplies to local residents,

“We must prepare for the worst and absolutely pray and hope for the best,” Premier Wayne Panton said in a video on Sunday.

The Mandara Mountains are a volcanic range extending about 190 km along the northern part of the Cameroon-Nigeria border.

Mandara Mountains is the most popular mountain in Adamawa and one of the post popular attraction in the state.

Mandara Mountains which lie in the northeastern part of the state along the Cameroon border is an ideal place for hiking, rock and mountain climbing.

Hiking in the remarkably beautiful landscapes of the Mandara Mountains is one of the most popular activities for exploring tourists.  

The spectacular rock formations and lush valleys and hills are interspersed with traditional villages with round huts, where visitors can experience authentic local culture.

The Mofu ethnic group dominates the region and the hillside villages subsist mainly through terrace farming, with sorghum the principal crop.

The Mandara Mountains were formed millions of years ago when a continental plate of basement rock deep beneath the African continent rose up, fragmenting and splitting as it was pushed to the surface.

The climate was significantly wetter in those times, so enormous amounts of precipitation formed numerous rivers that rushed through these fractures, carving them deeper and wider, resulting in the range’s notably rugged terrain.

Volcanic activity also played a role in the formation of the range. Eruptions of lava formed volcanic cones whose vents were eventually plugged with hardening magma.

These hardened cores are called volcanic plugs. In the case of the Mandara Mountains, the plugs were much more erosion-resistant than the exterior of the cones, which wore away over time.

Eventually, only the plugs remained, forming the stark, needle-like spires such as Kapsiki Peak that the range is known for.

The highest elevation is the summit of Mount Oupay, at 1,494 m (4,900 ft) above sea level (10°53′N 13°47′ECoordinates: 10°53′N 13°47′E).

Lake Muhazi is an artificial lake that is very long, thin and shallow, located in the eastern part of one of the smallest countries in Africa, the Republic of Rwanda.

The flooded valley has an interesting shape and it is 60 km (37 mi) long, with the maximum length measured to 37 km (23 mi), whereas it is some 5 km (3 mi) wide, and the maximum width measured to be 600 meters (1,969 feet).

The dam that creates this amazing lake is at the west end, and it was constructed in 1999, so that it will be able to replace the earth dam that existed previously.

Used during the colonial era from the Germans and the Belgians, the British too had some use of the lake, which served the purpose of easy and fast access towards the capital Kigali, however, it was the ominous scene of mass killing during the 1994 Rwanda Genocide.

A very important place for boating, fishing, bird watching, and camping, there are three interesting beaches on which the tourist come quite often.

The Seeds of Peace Center, Jambo Beach and Rwesero Beach, which are in the vicinity of the village Gahini are the most important ones, however, there are developers that are trying to make Lake Muhazi even more interesting.

Regarding the fauna of the lake, the most common mammal is the spotted-necked otter which has a population between 200 and 400 individuals, nonetheless, the lake is a perfect spot for the bird watchers, as there are many bird species around the lake.

Some of the bird species that are often visible and not trying to hide are the African fish eagles, malachite kingfishers, pied kingfishers, swamp flycatchers, village weavers, speckled mousebirds, grey crowned cranes and plenty more.

The phytoplankton of the lake is predominantly Microcystis aeruginosa and Ceratium hirundinella, which is one of the major food source for the introduced marbled lungfish and tilapia species to the lake, which were brought to the lake so that the fish import would be somewhat reduced.

Due to the proximity to the capital city, and the importance of the water as a source to the country, Lake Muhazi shall continue to play a major role in the tourism sector of Rwanda, as well as being the entrance towards the eastern part of the small and very beautiful African country.