“Dear god, we pray not that wrecks should happen, but if it be Thy will that they do, we pray Thee let them be to the benefit of Thy poor people of Scilly.”

So, supposedly, said the Reverend Troutbeck of The Isles of Scilly, just off the far tip of Cornwall. Wrecking – using lights to trick ships into running aground in order to steal their cargo – is an accepted part of Cornish history. And though if you see mysterious lights flashing on the cliffs today it’s more likely to be ravers or druids, taking home any cargo washed ashore in a storm is still considered totally legitimate. Sit in a garden shed or lovely bit of decking in the Penzance area, and it’s likely to be made of wood washed up from one memorable wreck.

I was intrigued then to read about the Facebook page Lego Lost At Sea, which documents the Lego regularly washed ashore in Cornwall. In 1997 the Tokio Express lost its containers overboard in a storm, one of which contained around 4.8 million pieces of Lego.

The Lego was largely nautical-themed, meaning the beaches around Newquay are scattered with Lego scuba gear, pirate paraphernalia, rigging, flippers and sea grass. The haul also included over 300,000 Lego daisies and some dragons. The Facebook page documents findings of the Lego, and also works to verify sightings from across the world.

Despite spending a lot of time on the beaches of West Cornwall, I’ve never seen any of this Lego – but at least thanks to the Facebook page I’ll now know what to look out for. And for any of you taking your kids there this summer, what better way to keep everyone distracted? My family still reminisces of the time, at the height of Star Wars mania, that my brother found a Storm Trooper figure on the beach. It made his summer. First one to spot a dragon buys the ice creams.