Archaeology of shipwrecks

[6] A systematic model for the characterisation and interpretation of the archaeology of shipwrecks was first proposed by Keith Muckelroy in 1976 in a paper on the Kennemerland, which was wrecked in 1664.

[7] A paper by Martin Gibbs in 2006,[8] expands Muckelroy's model to consider human behaviour at the time of the disaster and the long-term relationship between people and shipwrecks.

This model considers: Of the many examples where the sea bed provides an extremely hostile environment for submerged evidence of history, one of the most notable, the RMS Titanic, though a relatively young wreck and in deep water so calcium-starved that concretion does not occur, appears strong and relatively intact, though indications are that it has already incurred irreversible degradation of her steel and iron hull.

As such degradation inevitably continues, data will be forever lost, objects' context will be destroyed and the bulk of the wreck will over centuries completely deteriorate on the floor of the Atlantic Ocean.

The USS Monitor, having been found in the 1970s, was subjected to a program of attempted in situ preservation,[10] for example, but deterioration of the vessel progressed at such a rate that the rescue of her turret was undertaken lest nothing be saved from the wreck.

The shipwreck lay forgotten at the bottom of the sea until it was discovered in 2002 by an oilfield inspection crew working for the Okeanos Gas Gathering Company (OGGC).

[13] Large pipelines can crush sites and render some of their remnants inaccessible as pipe is dropped from the ocean surface to the substrate thousands of feet below.

Initially, the wrecking process changes it from the human organised form of a working vessel to an unstable state of structure and artefacts underwater.

The wrecks, and other archaeological sites that have been preserved have generally survived because the dynamic nature of the sea bed can result in artifacts becoming rapidly buried in sediments.

Wet environments, whether on land in the form of peat bogs and wells, or underwater are particularly important for the survival of organic material, such as wood, leather, fabric and horn.

Television programs, web videos and social media can also bring an understanding of underwater archaeology to a broad audience.

For one week in 2000 and 2001, live underwater video of the Queen Anne's Revenge Shipwreck Project was webcast to the Internet as a part of the QAR DiveLive[20] educational program that reached thousands of children around the world.

[21] Created and co-produced by Nautilus Productions and Marine Grafics, this project enabled students to talk to scientists and learn about methods and technologies used by the underwater archaeology team.

Laws that have since been passed in many jurisdictions now form the basis for legal contention in the event of a successful recovery and salvaging expedition.

Bacteria colonized and began to eat away at the steel, leaving behind tendrils and puddles of red, orange, and yellow byproducts.