Rodrigo Ortiz-Vazquez (#FL Shipwrecks Mentor)
My particular interest in Maritime Archaeology has been constant ever since 2006 when I started a degree in Archaeology and my diving career in Mexico City.
Location https://soton.academia.edu/RodrigoOrtiz
Activity
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Hi Joe,
I agree maybe in future years to come!
Hopefully not far away -
Thanks too all the participants, for all your comments and enthusiasm!
I'm glad that almost everybody had a great experience.
Hope you keep a lot of what was shown here throughout the course. -
Hi Joe,
In the UK archaeology, specifically maritime archaeology is financed by State organisations like Historic England or the the Historic Lottery fund, or Trust's (MAT, NAS, etc) or Universities such as Southampton. Fortunately, none of these instructions have the need to finance their research by selling artefacts nor do they do it for personal...
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Hi Helen,
Certainly carrying out an extensive excavation underwater as ways presents different challenges, that you would not have to face on land.
Have a look on what has been done at Boulder Cliff, in the west Solent:
http://www.maritimearchaeologytrust.org/bouldnorAlso, Dr Rachel Bynoe is working in the NorthSea near Happisbrough, where the...
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Hi Rikka.
Very inserting what you are doing in Finland.
Is there a online link to this digital archive? -
Hi Norma and Dani,
The Mercedes is being currently investigated by the Spanish government and the ARQUA (National Underwater Museum).
A recent publication of the ROV survey report was published not long... -
Hi Joe,
It has been put in practice in some places like Cesarea Maritime in Israel.
However, sometime and most times wrecks are in places which access is complicated or hazardous.
The future will be in 3d modelling and virtual access to the sites.
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Hi Harry,
We do engage in wreck diving techniques similar to cave diving.
Not everyone does, but I find it fascinating.
As you probably know most old wooden ships don't have much of the structure still standing. With some exceptions, particularly in the Baltic or the Balck sea.
But for modern wrecks you certainly need these skills because it is very... -
Hi Allanah,
I'm not ware of the full reason for Canada not to sign the UNESCO convention.
Maybe Dani Newman-Mentor has a better answer. -
Hi Stephen,
It's good that you point that out.
I think that with the intention of being as universal and compatible as possible with the legal framework of different countries it did not specify that topic in particular.As you probably are aware in the UK we have the Protection of Military Remains Act...
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Hi Len,
That is an interesting illustration.
Do you know where the original is found?
Fires would be usually put in a furnace or a pot, to contain the fire or the burning coals. Avoiding to cause any damage to the ship and probably cause a bigger fire.
It was common practice on long voyages as it is the only way of cooking or having warm food. -
Hi Christine,
That is a tricky question to answer.Associating a gender to a specific skill in archaeology can be sometimes confusing.
However it is well know that Viking women where sailors.
Rope making, and sail making where very important trades in which women and men where...
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Hi Harry,
I have to agree that orientation underwater is a very important skill. I took my diving courses in CMAS and later on SDI/TDI. I'm sure they're very similar to the PADI or MAUI ones.
Orientating your self around a site by understanding the structure of a ship takes much longer, specially if its a wooden wreck. You'll be surprised how much you...
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Hi Thomas,
I wasn't aware of your organisation.
Thanks for sharing the information and the link.
Are you involved in any way with the University of Florida? -
Hi Elizabeth,
I agree with you, it does tie in very well with some topics that where touched during this course! -
We all think so too
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Hi Bas,
That is a very tricky question to answer.
I haven't personally gone diving in a place and seen this phenomenon in western Europe.
I imaging that it would happen in submerges caves systems found in Spain, Gibraltar, and specifically Majorca
http://www.bbc.co.uk/oceans/locations/mediterranean/mallorca.shtml
Where it is very evident is...
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Hi Johannes,
there is a little more on week 4 that goes into that.
Unfortunately, that is a very hands on topic to fully understand with complicates things to show purely on line.
Hope you keep enjoying the course
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Hi Nigel,
I'm glad you enjoyed it that much.
You can do a Master course her at the university os Southampton in Part Time, that means a two year course.
I'll leave you the link here if you want to have a look at it:
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I'm sure you will enjoy it!
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Hi Bob,
You have touched a very inserting point.
I mentioned before that archaeology started yesterday. But you are right to point out that there are moral and legal issues that you can not and should not overlook.
In the specific case of wrecks that belong to the Royal Navy, there is a
Protection of Military Remains Act... -
Hi John,
That is a complicated story. in the case of wrecks you can report them here:
https://www.gov.uk/government/groups/receiver-of-wreck
Precisely to avoid this type of problems.
Most of the wrecks are not found by profesional archaeologist. Mostly fisherman, amateur divers, and people go to sea daily are the ones to find it. So it is very...
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Hi Robert,
It's a complicated combination of politics and interests I might happen in the near future. Fortunately, there is a solid legal framework to protect shipwrecks in UK territorial waters.
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Hi Andrew,
Neither has the UK or the US But more and more countries are signing it and ratifying the convention. -
Hi Thomas and Marina,
Site formation processes are composed by three main factors.
Chemical, physical and biological.
This mean that the combination of the three will determine the better or worst conservation of a wreck or a submerged site or objet.As Marina mentioned, the Baltic's brackish water help conservation. The water temperature is...
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Hi Linda,
Not only waterproof.
It probably protected the paddles and made them last more. -
Hi Peter,
Thanks for your comment.
I really do recomen you to look into McGrail.
There are some other examples around the world of boat ethnography applied to understand the archaeological record.https://pgras.soton.ac.uk/pgras-2012/clara-fuquen-gomez/
It is really important for an archaeologist to understand living traditions of boat building. As...
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Greatt link Hugh,
Very impressive the size of those boats
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Hi Damien,
That's a very interesting link! thank a lot!
Great way to spend a retirement by the way :) -
Hi Veronica,
I have to agree with you.
Excavating is always destroying in a way. But sometime it is the only way of really understanding a site. That is why conservation is so important for archaeologist and is or should be contemplated before, during and after any excavation.
I would like to add something, if you can't guarantee the preservation of an... -
Hi Peter,
It's a branch of Palaeontology that studies the burials of plants and animals, underlining the their decay and preservation processes to becoming fossilised.
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Hi Riikka,
Very interesting to know a little bit more about archaeology in Finland.
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Hi Harry,
In terms of practice it is easier to move around when you have a fixed grid to recored the structure of a ship, or objets. By using the same grid system grasping with your feet.
Otherwise it's not standard practise to visit a site with out fins. It really depends on site conditions.If your'e going inside a wreck with standing structure,...
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Hi Saman,
I'm sure you will learn a lot during the course.
Hope you enjoy it -
Hi Nicky,
It depends on the project objectives.Here's a geotechnical report done by Thomas Dhoop a fellow researcher and the University of Southampton. It's a good example of how to do maritime archaeology on land, investigating the medieval town of Winchelsea. There is a section that goes it the core analysis....
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Hi all,
Very interesting comments.
I have to agree with you that geophysical survey are expensive.
I'll leave here a link to a great case study example of using a sub-bottom profiler for archaeology, on a shipwreck called the Grace Dieu.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0305440308002264
You will see the full potential a doing...
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Hi Andrew,
Good Link simple and straightforward! -
Hi Augusto,
Very interesting link!
Thanks for that -
Hi John,
Have a look at this link i'm sure you will find it of some interest:
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Hi Jeff,
I'm really glad you have enjoyed it so far.
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I apologise for that.
Try it from a desktop/laptop.
I think we haven't had any issues on other platforms. -
Hi Maria,
It's great to here you are enjoying it!
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Hi Richard,
The depth limit depends on the equipment you are using.
If you see the image with the ¨fish¨ (sonar attached at the end), if you have enough cable length on the winch you can scan very deep.
It´s called a deep tow. But if the kit is mounted to the hull of the ship, then you have other limitations to depth.
In theory you can survey at any... -
Hi Brendan,
I agree with you.
Have a look at the king ship reconstructions in Denmark at the Roskilde Museum: http://www.vikingeskibsmuseet.dk/en/ -
Hi Jimmy,
That is a very interesting observation!
Actually, the use of iron knees is a French innovation, that was later acquired by the British Navy.We have a great example in the West Solent.
The HMS Invincible, is a 74-gun man of war, built in Rochefort in 1744 and later captured by the the British.
This is one of the first...
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I think the Portus MOOC and this one complement each other. However this course aims to give you a wider spectrum of maritime archaeology and not only focused on the Roman Period.
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Hi Henrike,
You are right "elite exchange" is referred to people with the economic capacity of acquiring these artefacts, as they where expensive to obtain and to transport.
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Hi Harry,
I Have not done it. But I know the people who run it, and they are good archaeologists with a lot of practical experience.
This might give you a hint of where to start in Canada.
http://www.thecanadianencyclopedia.ca/en/article/maritime-archaeology/ -
Hi Jimmy,
Archaeology started yesterday if a place or an object was abandoned and/or lost or out of use, it becomes an archaeological context.
However in legal terms as the UNESCO has proposed it that it should become archaeological relevant until it's 100 years old:
http://unesdoc.unesco.org/images/0015/001528/152883E.pdfConsidering that 100 year...
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Hi Laura,
Absolutely agree with you! We spend most of our time on land doing research.
It's not all about diving.
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Hi Karsten,
Thanks for your comments!
Boulder Cliff has become a a Mesolithic site of great importance.
Not only have they found good stratigraphy, but the earliest evidence of wheat in Britain!
If you want more information have a look at the following...
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Hi Karsten,
I am not aware of any iconography or written sources that mention any greek small fishing (caique) or as you called them cup-boats.
Let us know if you find some!
Have a look at this reading list: -
HI Alba,
I've been lucky enough to be involved with people from the Universitat de Barcelona and the Centre for Underwater Archaeology of Catalunya (CASC).
Have a look at Universidad de Cadiz (UCA), as they have the only running Master and PhD in maritime archaeology in Spain.
https://posgrado.uca.es/web/You have other options such as...
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Hi David,
Thanks for your comment on the timeline.
I have to say that I agree with you with your last statement:"There can't be a better combination than a diver/Archeologist, but there are times when the site situation is difficult and a robot could be more appropriate".
Safety and time limitations for divers are other very good reason use an...
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Hi Mary,
There is a great expo on the Titanic held at the Sea City Museum in Southampton.You would be surprised on the quality of the expo that is purely based on information without a single object of the wreck.
As far as it come to financing the recovery of artifacts by selling them is tricky however been proven so many...
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Hi Isabel,
Welcome to the course. There is some very interesting research carried out in Colombia at the moment. Dr Clara Fuquen did her PhD here at the University of Southampton you might have more thing in common to talk about.
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Hi Magdalena,
Technology has improved a lot in the past 20 years of ROV's and Automatic Unmanned Vehicles (AUV's), from recording to excavating, and carefully extracting objet.
They become specially useful when a site or a wreck is found in very deep water as it was done on Titanic, or other places in the Black Sea.
Have a look at this video its very...
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Hi Marcelo,
The HMS Swift is a perfect example to kick start your interest in maritime archaeology in Argentina.
http://www.inapl.gov.ar/invest/proas/proas_proyectos_swift.html
Dra. Dolores Elkin has carried out interesting work on this vessel.
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Hi Juan Carlos,
It's great to here that your getting involved with the MOOC.
I'm sure you will enjoy it.
Peru has great potential for research in maritime archaeology.
Have a look at this blog.
Carlos Ausejo does interesting...
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Don't worry there are many way you can get involved doing maritime archaeology with out getting wet!
Have a look at the NAS website something else might interest you.
or CITIZAN
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Hi Juan Carlos,
I found a couple on line:
https://archive.org/stream/diccionariomarit00madruoft#page/n61/mode/2up
https://marina.uniovi.es/diccionario/esping/tags/aesp
http://www.amazon.com/Diccionario-Mar%C3%ADtimo-Español-Spanish-Edition/dp/B002KE4WQC
You can find a hardcopy in the Naval Museum of Madrid:
O´Scanlan, Timoteo. 2003....
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Hi Zip,
You are right, the MAST has a good programme.
Sorry I did not mention it before.
If you decided to join I hope you enjoy it as well as the rest of this course
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Hi Pornnatcha,
In submerged cave systems such as the outstanding cenotes in the Yucatan Peninsula in Mexico, this is a common phenomenon.
In some these caves there are remains of the earliest settlers in America, megafauna and even Mayan offerings.
The caves are flooded by fresh water and once they get closer to the sea, a halocline is produced, and...
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Hi Harry,
I totally agree that in takes even years to become a good diver.
I have the pleasure of working with divers from many other professions and it is a a great asset having this diversity.
There are many ways of getting involved. For example: the Nautical Archaeology Society (NAS) is very keen on getting people involved into maritime...
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Hi Harry and Zip,
As Prof. Jon Adams mentions, it certainly does take less time to become a diver than a archaeologist. You can become a diver at any recreational diving centre in a weekend.
Although I agree that good divers are non always easy to find. Ever more scarce is the combination of both.
However, there is a 'middle ground', when it comes...
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Hi Kevin,
There are several pros and cons of both techniques.
For example there is a physical limit on the size of a shell based boat, that on a frame first could be build larger as they are more robust and less flexible.
However a strong component to boat building around the world comes down to tradition. If you are used to build a boat and it...
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Hi Selma,
I consulted a couple of naval dictionaries and yes it can be a brail ring, however it can also be a cargo ring, so you would have to put it into context.
If you are talking about rigging then there is no doubt.
Have a look at this short blog post written by Dr. Julian Whitewright on Roman ships....
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Hi Riikka,
Certainly, the Baltic Sea is a unique place that combines several factors for ship conservation.
I think you might find what Prof. Johan Rönnby and others carry out in Sweden.
Also, have a...
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Hi Cathy,
There is a new mode of on-line courses that the NAS set up.
So have a look and you might be able to pick up with your certification.
http://www.nauticalarchaeologysociety.org
I'm sure you will this enjoy the course.
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Hi Elizabeth,
You might be interested in joining the Nautical Archaeology Society (NAS) then.
They have a field school for Cyprus during summer!
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Hi Sree,
You can download the video by clicking on a button underneath the video.
There are two options: HD (High definition) or Standard -
Hi Elizabeth,
I do apologise for the subtitles.
But there is a way of getting rid of them!
If you look at the bottom icons from the video the one beside the HD option to the left, you can click there and move to the option of no subtitles. -
Hi Amit,
Dr. Lucy Blue has carried out research in India focussed mainly on traditional boat building. She is currently working in the Middle East, Oman and UAE so you might find her work of your interest.
You can find a list of her publications in the following link:
http://www.southampton.ac.uk/archaeology/about/staff/lkb.page#publications
I hope...
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Hi Selma,
Unfortunately, the excavation of the 31 or 39 shipwrecks found in Pisa, is less well published than Yenikapi, where there is ongoing research.
But they really are an extraordinary find.
These articles might be of your interest:
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Hi Paul,
A boat builder friend explained it to me with this phrase:
"Remember all ships are boats but not all boats are ships"
It's simply a matter of size, a ship is a large boat.
Hope that makes things clear
Enjoy the rest of the course
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Hi Elizabeth,
I don't have knowledge about that type of find, But if your interested in mosaics from north Africa you should definitely have a look a this link to the Bardo Museum in Tunisia:
http://www.bardomuseum.tn/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=280&Itemid=97&lang=en
Hope you enjoy the rest of the course.
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Hi Bob,
You are located in an amazing area,
I've herd that in Caesaria, there is some volunteering work on the underwater excavations.
There is a diving centre at the site where you can ask for more information:
http://www.caesarea-diving.com/En/page.asp?id=108
There is a very good maritime programme held at the university of Haifa:
... -
Hi Andrew,
Don't worry you can do the course without having Facebook or Twitter.
However some interesting stuff gets posted on the Twitter account.
If you have any questions post your enquiries here and we will do our best to answer. -
Hi Richard,
You might be interested in this publication:
I'll leave you a link to the book review.
http://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11457-015-9143-2
It's really interestingEnjoy the course
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Hi all,
If you are interest in seeing a video on the HMS Invincible.
Have a look at the blog:http://moocs.southampton.ac.uk/shipwrecks/2015/03/17/hms-invincible-dive/
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Hi,
Have a look at this link on the HMS Invincible it might be of your interest:
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Hi Susan and all,
Thanks for your comment,
I agree with you
Indeed each site is completely different.
Taking Sweden as an example, they have so many well preserved shipwrecks in their territorial waters that it would be impossible take them all out of the water and pay for there conservation and display in a museum.
Therefore, they are...
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Hi again,
Have a look at this link:
Organic material is better preserved underwater, and this included human remains.
There is a lot to study even in prehistoric sites such as the one I've post here.
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Hi Fae,
This link might be of interest for you.
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I agree with you Ana,
That's a great exhibition!
A great success story for maritime archaeology and maritime law in Spain. -
Hi David,
I do not recall the shipwreck that you are taking about.
Could it be the San Diego?
http://www.nationalmuseum.gov.ph/nationalmuseumbeta/Museums%20and%20Branches/sandiego.html
Archaeology dose not have to be funded my selling artefacts from any site, whether it is on land or in the water.
There are better ways of getting funding for...
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I agree with you both,
That's why experimental archaeology and/or ethnography are important parts of the learning process.
However the difficulty of understanding the archaeological record is that we can not record the people making these complex artefact called boats.
Many times we have to "reverse engineer" the building process from what we have...
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Hi Julie and Pierre,
There is a very interesting mix between geology and archaeology.
It's called Geoarchaeology.
This book might be of your interest.
http://eu.wiley.com/WileyCDA/WileyTitle/productCd-0632060441.html
Personally, I find it great to talk to people from different backgrounds to understand the archaeological landscapes.
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There are many things that can make it difficult for a GPS system to work.
Poor satellite coverage is common in remote places that archaeologist tend to work in.
Sometimes even overheating or frost affects the equipment in extreme conditions.
On land, dense vegetation growth that creates a "roof" is enough to interrupt the signal to get from the... -
Hi David,
There are many way of getting involved.
In Britain, public outreach is one of the priorities of world wide renown institutions, such as: the NAS (Nautical Archaeology Society) or the MAT (Maritime Archaeological Trust).
These links might be of interest for...
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Hi Tomoko,
This link might be of interest for you:
http://archaeologydataservice.ac.uk/archives/view/submerged_eh_2013/downloads.cfm
You will find a PDF that you can download.
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Hi Luz,
I absolute agree with you.
To be able to ¨fly¨ or ¨float¨ around the site is a major advantage in terms of disturbing archaeological material!
Hope you keep enjoying the course
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Hi Tomoko,
Good questions!
The metal grid mesures 1x1m and it is subdivided in smaller squares of 20cm.
It is placed to aid the archaeologist to record objects with a technical drawing.
If the purpose is simply to record, then that is what is done.
We do not lift or take out any object from the seabed unless done to answer a specific research...
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Hi Natalia,
When an archaeological survey or excavation takes place on land or in the water it is very important to carefully select where you are going to place a grid.
This allows to exactly record what you are interest in.
Especially when you are u
So, you would have to place the grid in the most promising area or to answer your specific research... -
Hi Saheli,
If you want to read more about this topic this might be if your interest:
http://www.colors.uconn.edu/pubs/DIERSSEN-Bathymetry_Methods_LO.pdf
http://oceanservice.noaa.gov/facts/bathymetry.html
Hope you have enjoyed the course so far
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Hi Martin,
Geophysics allows us locate new sites, provide a bigger picture (wider context), understand site dynamics and create an accurate record.
For example wrecks tend to be located in areas where the conditions are not easy to dive or you have limited visibility.
So many times the only way of completely understanding a wreck site is with the use of... -
Hi Catherine,
It all depends on the extension of the area that you want to cover.
But in general terms Side Scan Sonar, Single beam, Swath Bathymetry and Magnetometry are used to cover large areas.
On the other hand a sub-bottom profilers are used on target area.
A survey can take from hours up to days, and months.
Have a look at this link for...
