Do fundo do mar... Sea bottom
Sunday, April 29, 2007
Wreck of the 'Hera' a heritage site loaded with 107-year-old beer
_________________________________________________________________________________
CDNN
By Sandra McCulloch
CDNN
By Sandra McCulloch
April 29, 2007
TOFINO, British Columbia -- A historic shipwreck and its cargo of 107-year-old bottled beer is expected to draw divers from around the world to Tofino, now that it's been designated an official heritage site.
The wreck of the Hera was inaugurated on the weekend, its location marked by floating buoys, while plaques on the shore and underwater tell how it came to be there.
The U.S. schooner Hera sank after it caught fire off Tofino in November 1899. She had been heading to Hawaii with a cargo of 60,000 quarts of Rainier beer, a prefabricated schoolhouse and 11 grand pianos.
The wreck was forgotten for decades but was located and identified in 1974, after snagging countless crab traps. It was designated B.C.'s first underwater heritage site.
The Hera's anchor is now on display at Grice Park in Tofino.
The wreck "is a really important heritage resource that needs to be protected and promoted," said David Griffiths, executive director of the Tonquin Foundation.
"Through this, we hope to encourage divers to come and explore the site and enjoy the diving here."
There are hundreds of shipwrecks off the West Coast but the Hera is so close to Tofino, it makes sense to let people know it's there, said Griffiths. "It's less than half a mile from the waterfront here."
Griffiths is a diver and has been a full-time resident of Tofino for three years. The diving in the area "is very good. There are lots of currents and open ocean and a wealth of marine life and shipwrecks.
"We get our fair share of whale-watchers and fishermen. This is just another way of promoting diving to quite a large scuba-diving public."
There were 1,000 barrels containing the quart-bottles of beer, which make for an interesting sight on the sea floor, Griffiths said.
"Some of the bottles still have labels on them."
He tried drinking the beer a few years ago "and it wasn't very nice at all. You couldn't get close to it."
The fire burned to a point high in the hold, preserving everything below that line. "What's left of the hull is really well preserved. The structure of the ship is still evident."
This ship was the first underwater wreck to be designated as a heritage site, Griffiths said. "Now pretty much every shipwreck in the province is designated, but years ago they used to do it one at a time, as people lobbied or it."
A good crowd of Tofino residents turned out for the ceremony Saturday, he said. "I think that people like to see their history interpreted in this way."
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
The wreck of the Hera was inaugurated on the weekend, its location marked by floating buoys, while plaques on the shore and underwater tell how it came to be there.
The U.S. schooner Hera sank after it caught fire off Tofino in November 1899. She had been heading to Hawaii with a cargo of 60,000 quarts of Rainier beer, a prefabricated schoolhouse and 11 grand pianos.
The wreck was forgotten for decades but was located and identified in 1974, after snagging countless crab traps. It was designated B.C.'s first underwater heritage site.
The Hera's anchor is now on display at Grice Park in Tofino.
The wreck "is a really important heritage resource that needs to be protected and promoted," said David Griffiths, executive director of the Tonquin Foundation.
"Through this, we hope to encourage divers to come and explore the site and enjoy the diving here."
There are hundreds of shipwrecks off the West Coast but the Hera is so close to Tofino, it makes sense to let people know it's there, said Griffiths. "It's less than half a mile from the waterfront here."
Griffiths is a diver and has been a full-time resident of Tofino for three years. The diving in the area "is very good. There are lots of currents and open ocean and a wealth of marine life and shipwrecks.
"We get our fair share of whale-watchers and fishermen. This is just another way of promoting diving to quite a large scuba-diving public."
There were 1,000 barrels containing the quart-bottles of beer, which make for an interesting sight on the sea floor, Griffiths said.
"Some of the bottles still have labels on them."
He tried drinking the beer a few years ago "and it wasn't very nice at all. You couldn't get close to it."
The fire burned to a point high in the hold, preserving everything below that line. "What's left of the hull is really well preserved. The structure of the ship is still evident."
This ship was the first underwater wreck to be designated as a heritage site, Griffiths said. "Now pretty much every shipwreck in the province is designated, but years ago they used to do it one at a time, as people lobbied or it."
A good crowd of Tofino residents turned out for the ceremony Saturday, he said. "I think that people like to see their history interpreted in this way."
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Saturday, April 28, 2007
Shipwreck including hundres of beer bottles, grand pianos becomes BC park
By Keven Drews
April 28, 2007
TOFINO, B.C. - More than 107 years after fire ravaged her masts and deck, the Hera's hull and some of her cargo - including hundreds of bottles of Rainier beer - still remain intact.
Time has been kind to this sunken U.S. schooner, though the 11 grand pianos appear to be lost.
This weekend, the District of Tofino and a handful of volunteers will take action to protect the wreck for years to come.
Tofino will declare the wreck Canada's first municipal underwater heritage park, just as volunteer divers unveil an orange-and-white information buoy and mark the ship with bronze plaques.
"I guess the most important thing for me is the protection and preservation of our marine heritage in Clayoquot Sound," said David Griffiths, executive director of the Tonquin Foundation, a non-profit group dedicated to preserving marine heritage sites.
"She's basically intact from the deck down. Half the ship is totally buried."
Built in Boston, Mass., in 1869, the Hera, a three-mast schooner, spent her first 30 years sailing between San Francisco and Australia, San Francisco and Portland, and participating in the Bering Sea cod fishery.
She departed Seattle for Honolulu on Nov. 18, 1899, loaded with grain, the pianos, 1,800 barrels of lime, a knocked-down school house and 60,000 quart bottles of the Seattle Malting and Brewing Company's Rainier beer.
As the Hera crept past Cape Flattery, a southwester caught the ship and pushed her towards Vancouver Island.
The vessel took on water. The barrels, holding lime burst and the lime began to smolder.
About half a kilometer off what is now Tofino's First Street Dock, the crew abandoned ship and the Hera sank.
Tofino diver Rod Palm located the wreck in December 1974 after a crab fisherman complained that one of his traps got caught on the ocean's bottom. The trap, said the fisherman, was rust-stained once recovered.
Not long after, the Hera was declared B.C.'s first protected underwater heritage site.
Crab fishermen, however, continued to have their traps caught on the Hera.
In August 2005, members of the Tonquin Foundation retrieved 30 crab traps from the site. The foundation recommended marking the site with international orange-and-white information buoys.
This weekend, the Tonquin Foundation unveiled the information buoy and a bronze information plaque at the foot of the Hera's anchor, which rests on Tofino's waterfront.
Divers will also lay five bronze information plaques on the Hera.
"This is the culmination of about two years of work," said Griffiths.
The project cost about $5,000 and required the participation of Tofino, the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District, the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Trust and the provincial government.
Jacques Marc, president of the Underwater Archaeology Society of British Columbia, said the site is unique because there's a "substantial chunk" of the vessel still preserved in the sand.
"We don't have too many turn-of-the-century wooden sailing ships you can see," he said.
Marking the site, said Marc, will remind fishermen of the wreck and hopefully prevent more gear from fouling on the site.
"It's another part of our heritage people find interest," said Mayor John Fraser.
Fraser said the foundation's work is good news for Tofino, and will provide another attraction for locals and tourists.
"I really hope it generates more visits from divers and consequently more of an economic boost," said Griffiths.
As for the quality of beer in the bottles, Griffiths, who opened a bottle many years ago, recommends divers leave it alone.
"It was horrible," he said. "It was pretty skunky."
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
April 28, 2007
TOFINO, B.C. - More than 107 years after fire ravaged her masts and deck, the Hera's hull and some of her cargo - including hundreds of bottles of Rainier beer - still remain intact.
Time has been kind to this sunken U.S. schooner, though the 11 grand pianos appear to be lost.
This weekend, the District of Tofino and a handful of volunteers will take action to protect the wreck for years to come.
Tofino will declare the wreck Canada's first municipal underwater heritage park, just as volunteer divers unveil an orange-and-white information buoy and mark the ship with bronze plaques.
"I guess the most important thing for me is the protection and preservation of our marine heritage in Clayoquot Sound," said David Griffiths, executive director of the Tonquin Foundation, a non-profit group dedicated to preserving marine heritage sites.
"She's basically intact from the deck down. Half the ship is totally buried."
Built in Boston, Mass., in 1869, the Hera, a three-mast schooner, spent her first 30 years sailing between San Francisco and Australia, San Francisco and Portland, and participating in the Bering Sea cod fishery.
She departed Seattle for Honolulu on Nov. 18, 1899, loaded with grain, the pianos, 1,800 barrels of lime, a knocked-down school house and 60,000 quart bottles of the Seattle Malting and Brewing Company's Rainier beer.
As the Hera crept past Cape Flattery, a southwester caught the ship and pushed her towards Vancouver Island.
The vessel took on water. The barrels, holding lime burst and the lime began to smolder.
About half a kilometer off what is now Tofino's First Street Dock, the crew abandoned ship and the Hera sank.
Tofino diver Rod Palm located the wreck in December 1974 after a crab fisherman complained that one of his traps got caught on the ocean's bottom. The trap, said the fisherman, was rust-stained once recovered.
Not long after, the Hera was declared B.C.'s first protected underwater heritage site.
Crab fishermen, however, continued to have their traps caught on the Hera.
In August 2005, members of the Tonquin Foundation retrieved 30 crab traps from the site. The foundation recommended marking the site with international orange-and-white information buoys.
This weekend, the Tonquin Foundation unveiled the information buoy and a bronze information plaque at the foot of the Hera's anchor, which rests on Tofino's waterfront.
Divers will also lay five bronze information plaques on the Hera.
"This is the culmination of about two years of work," said Griffiths.
The project cost about $5,000 and required the participation of Tofino, the Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District, the Clayoquot Sound Biosphere Trust and the provincial government.
Jacques Marc, president of the Underwater Archaeology Society of British Columbia, said the site is unique because there's a "substantial chunk" of the vessel still preserved in the sand.
"We don't have too many turn-of-the-century wooden sailing ships you can see," he said.
Marking the site, said Marc, will remind fishermen of the wreck and hopefully prevent more gear from fouling on the site.
"It's another part of our heritage people find interest," said Mayor John Fraser.
Fraser said the foundation's work is good news for Tofino, and will provide another attraction for locals and tourists.
"I really hope it generates more visits from divers and consequently more of an economic boost," said Griffiths.
As for the quality of beer in the bottles, Griffiths, who opened a bottle many years ago, recommends divers leave it alone.
"It was horrible," he said. "It was pretty skunky."
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Wednesday, April 25, 2007
Lost and found: Chatterton, Kohler dive for clues to USS Lagarto sinking
April 25, 2007
THAILAND -- When the USS Lagarto was launched on May 28, 1944, the submarine slid into the fresh water of the Manitowoc River to the sounds of a band and cheering from hundreds of residents of this small town in America's heartland.
When the Lagarto died less than a year later in the salt water of the Gulf of Thailand, it slipped beneath the waves and plunged to the bottom, trying to evade an enemy attack.
What the crew likely heard last were the clicking noises of depth charges followed by loud, percussive blasts.
Today, the Lagarto sits upright in 236 feet of water, looking as if a giant hand punched in the hull on the port side.
For six decades, no one knew what happened to the Lagarto and its crew of 86. Two years ago, a British diver discovered a submarine off Thailand, in an area where fishermen complained that their nets were snagging. Navy divers last year confirmed the wreck was the Lagarto.
For the crew's families, the discovery meant they finally knew where their loved ones' grave was located. What they didn't know was how the Lagarto plunged to its death or whether their loved ones died quickly.
To answer those questions, two well-known shipwreck divers journeyed to Thailand last month in an expedition sponsored by the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc to film the wreck and research the sinking.
Film from the expedition will be included in a documentary planned for 2008 chronicling the Lagarto's sinking and the submarine industry in Manitowoc. Some footage is to be shown at a USS Lagarto remembrance ceremony and gathering May 4 and 5 at the museum.
John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, who appeared in the popular History Channel series "Deep Sea Detectives," spent four days diving at the Lagarto last month. Chatterton is returning for more dives in a few weeks.
Chatterton and Kohler spent an hour on the bottom each time they visited the sunken sub. As they slowly descended through the water, the ship came into view, its periscope sticking up, covered in fishing nets and lying on a hard coral bottom. Since the sub was not sitting in sand or mud, they could see clearly.
"It looked like the submarine was sailing through a cloud. It was a touching moment," Kohler said in a phone interview from his New Jersey home.
All the hatches were closed, which meant there was no time for crew members to escape.
The rudder was turned hard to port, and the dive planes were set for a hard dive at the time the Lagarto was fatally wounded. The outer door to torpedo tube No. 4 was half-open. No torpedo was in the tube, indicating that the Lagarto had recently fired.
"The Lagarto went down swinging," Chatterton said.
Testing a theory
For the submarine to dive deep to escape its pursuer, all outer torpedo tube doors must be closed to make the ship watertight.
"If the depth charge detonates near them at the time the (outside) hatch is trying to close, it could blow the inside hatch off its hinges," Kohler said. That would have sent water gushing through the open torpedo tube and into the forward torpedo room.
When Chatterton returns to the sub next month, he's bringing a video camera affixed to an ROV, or remotely operated vehicle, to send into the 24-foot-long No. 4 torpedo tube to determine whether the inner door is open.
Because the wreck is a war grave, Chatterton and Kohler did not try to enter it, and the ROV will not be sent beyond the torpedo tube.
The divers saw a hole about 18 feet high and 8 to 9 feet wide on the port side, near the petty officers' quarters and forward torpedo room. The outer skin had been blown away and the inner hull dented in about 3 feet. The ballast and fuel tanks were damaged.
"But at the same time, the hull really held together. Obviously, it was a very well-built submarine," Chatterton said.
Frightening attack
A depth-charge attack on a submarine could be an excruciating and frightening experience.
Charlie Stewart survived one that lasted eight hours on Mother's Day 1945 on the USS Cobia, a submarine displayed at the museum in Manitowoc. Stewart, 81, volunteers as a guide on the Cobia in the summer.
After attacking two Japanese ships, the Cobia became trapped in only 120 feet of water in the Gulf of Siam, now the Gulf of Thailand, as the Japanese fired off barrel after barrel, he said.
With most of the lights, fans and life support systems off to quiet the sub, Stewart sat silently on a bunk in the aft torpedo room, where a dozen other sailors had sought refuge. As the temperature soared to 125 degrees, the men took off their uniforms and wrung the sweat out of their underwear.
"You'd hear a click, and that warned us that very soon after you'd hear a really big boom. We would hold our head in our knees," he said. "We never knew for sure whether the next boom was going to be the end of us."
Losing a husband
The Lagarto - named after the Spanish and Portuguese word for lizard - was last heard from on May 3, 1945.
A radio transmission from the Japanese minelayer Hatsutaka said it had sunk a U.S. sub in the area where the Lagarto had been on patrol, Kohler said. Military records show that another Manitowoc-built submarine, the USS Hawkbill, tracked down and sank the Hatsutaka. A life ring picked up by the Hawkbill crew from the Hatsutaka is now in the Maritime Museum's collection.
Among the 86 men on board the Lagarto was Harold A. Todd Jr., 25, a Wauwatosa native and lieutenant junior grade who became a father five weeks before the sub was lost. Rae Kinn, who is now 85 and lives in Oconomowoc, was his wife.
Kinn was living with her sister, whose husband also was fighting in the war. When the doorbell rang, Kinn looked out to see a man on a bicycle. In World War II, families were notified not by uniformed officers, but by Western Union telegram.
"I knew somebody was about to get bad news," she said. "It was for me. It took me a long time to open it."
Kinn and her husband lived in Manitowoc while the Lagarto went through its sea trials and the crew trained. She recalls watching as the captain's wife christened the sub with a bottle of champagne before the ship splashed sideways into the water.
The Navy told the Lagarto families only that the ship was missing. More than a year later, the sub and its crew were presumed dead. Kinn held out hope that the dashing young man she called Hal had somehow survived.
Eventually, she and her son moved on with their lives. Still, she always wondered what happened to her first love. When the Lagarto was finally found, "it was a nice kind of emotion," she said.
"That sounds strange," she said, "but it was nice to know where they ended up."
Last year, Kinn attended a Lagarto remembrance ceremony in Manitowoc and saw video shot by divers of the ship she remembered in all its gleaming glory six decades earlier.
"It was sitting upright like it just went down," she said. "There were seaweeds floating around it. It was a beautiful grave site. Much better than a hole in the ground."
____
www.schnorkel.blogspot.com
THAILAND -- When the USS Lagarto was launched on May 28, 1944, the submarine slid into the fresh water of the Manitowoc River to the sounds of a band and cheering from hundreds of residents of this small town in America's heartland.
When the Lagarto died less than a year later in the salt water of the Gulf of Thailand, it slipped beneath the waves and plunged to the bottom, trying to evade an enemy attack.
What the crew likely heard last were the clicking noises of depth charges followed by loud, percussive blasts.
Today, the Lagarto sits upright in 236 feet of water, looking as if a giant hand punched in the hull on the port side.
For six decades, no one knew what happened to the Lagarto and its crew of 86. Two years ago, a British diver discovered a submarine off Thailand, in an area where fishermen complained that their nets were snagging. Navy divers last year confirmed the wreck was the Lagarto.
For the crew's families, the discovery meant they finally knew where their loved ones' grave was located. What they didn't know was how the Lagarto plunged to its death or whether their loved ones died quickly.
To answer those questions, two well-known shipwreck divers journeyed to Thailand last month in an expedition sponsored by the Wisconsin Maritime Museum in Manitowoc to film the wreck and research the sinking.
Film from the expedition will be included in a documentary planned for 2008 chronicling the Lagarto's sinking and the submarine industry in Manitowoc. Some footage is to be shown at a USS Lagarto remembrance ceremony and gathering May 4 and 5 at the museum.
John Chatterton and Richie Kohler, who appeared in the popular History Channel series "Deep Sea Detectives," spent four days diving at the Lagarto last month. Chatterton is returning for more dives in a few weeks.
Chatterton and Kohler spent an hour on the bottom each time they visited the sunken sub. As they slowly descended through the water, the ship came into view, its periscope sticking up, covered in fishing nets and lying on a hard coral bottom. Since the sub was not sitting in sand or mud, they could see clearly.
"It looked like the submarine was sailing through a cloud. It was a touching moment," Kohler said in a phone interview from his New Jersey home.
All the hatches were closed, which meant there was no time for crew members to escape.
The rudder was turned hard to port, and the dive planes were set for a hard dive at the time the Lagarto was fatally wounded. The outer door to torpedo tube No. 4 was half-open. No torpedo was in the tube, indicating that the Lagarto had recently fired.
"The Lagarto went down swinging," Chatterton said.
Testing a theory
For the submarine to dive deep to escape its pursuer, all outer torpedo tube doors must be closed to make the ship watertight.
"If the depth charge detonates near them at the time the (outside) hatch is trying to close, it could blow the inside hatch off its hinges," Kohler said. That would have sent water gushing through the open torpedo tube and into the forward torpedo room.
When Chatterton returns to the sub next month, he's bringing a video camera affixed to an ROV, or remotely operated vehicle, to send into the 24-foot-long No. 4 torpedo tube to determine whether the inner door is open.
Because the wreck is a war grave, Chatterton and Kohler did not try to enter it, and the ROV will not be sent beyond the torpedo tube.
The divers saw a hole about 18 feet high and 8 to 9 feet wide on the port side, near the petty officers' quarters and forward torpedo room. The outer skin had been blown away and the inner hull dented in about 3 feet. The ballast and fuel tanks were damaged.
"But at the same time, the hull really held together. Obviously, it was a very well-built submarine," Chatterton said.
Frightening attack
A depth-charge attack on a submarine could be an excruciating and frightening experience.
Charlie Stewart survived one that lasted eight hours on Mother's Day 1945 on the USS Cobia, a submarine displayed at the museum in Manitowoc. Stewart, 81, volunteers as a guide on the Cobia in the summer.
After attacking two Japanese ships, the Cobia became trapped in only 120 feet of water in the Gulf of Siam, now the Gulf of Thailand, as the Japanese fired off barrel after barrel, he said.
With most of the lights, fans and life support systems off to quiet the sub, Stewart sat silently on a bunk in the aft torpedo room, where a dozen other sailors had sought refuge. As the temperature soared to 125 degrees, the men took off their uniforms and wrung the sweat out of their underwear.
"You'd hear a click, and that warned us that very soon after you'd hear a really big boom. We would hold our head in our knees," he said. "We never knew for sure whether the next boom was going to be the end of us."
Losing a husband
The Lagarto - named after the Spanish and Portuguese word for lizard - was last heard from on May 3, 1945.
A radio transmission from the Japanese minelayer Hatsutaka said it had sunk a U.S. sub in the area where the Lagarto had been on patrol, Kohler said. Military records show that another Manitowoc-built submarine, the USS Hawkbill, tracked down and sank the Hatsutaka. A life ring picked up by the Hawkbill crew from the Hatsutaka is now in the Maritime Museum's collection.
Among the 86 men on board the Lagarto was Harold A. Todd Jr., 25, a Wauwatosa native and lieutenant junior grade who became a father five weeks before the sub was lost. Rae Kinn, who is now 85 and lives in Oconomowoc, was his wife.
Kinn was living with her sister, whose husband also was fighting in the war. When the doorbell rang, Kinn looked out to see a man on a bicycle. In World War II, families were notified not by uniformed officers, but by Western Union telegram.
"I knew somebody was about to get bad news," she said. "It was for me. It took me a long time to open it."
Kinn and her husband lived in Manitowoc while the Lagarto went through its sea trials and the crew trained. She recalls watching as the captain's wife christened the sub with a bottle of champagne before the ship splashed sideways into the water.
The Navy told the Lagarto families only that the ship was missing. More than a year later, the sub and its crew were presumed dead. Kinn held out hope that the dashing young man she called Hal had somehow survived.
Eventually, she and her son moved on with their lives. Still, she always wondered what happened to her first love. When the Lagarto was finally found, "it was a nice kind of emotion," she said.
"That sounds strange," she said, "but it was nice to know where they ended up."
Last year, Kinn attended a Lagarto remembrance ceremony in Manitowoc and saw video shot by divers of the ship she remembered in all its gleaming glory six decades earlier.
"It was sitting upright like it just went down," she said. "There were seaweeds floating around it. It was a beautiful grave site. Much better than a hole in the ground."
____
www.schnorkel.blogspot.com
Prehistoric playground found below the waves
By Ian Sample
April 25, 2007
A lost landscape where early humans roamed more than 12,000 years ago has been discovered beneath the North Sea.
A map of the underwater world reveals criss-crossing rivers, giant lakes and gentle hills around which hunter-gatherers made their homes toward the end of the last ice age.
The region was inundated between 18,000 and 6000BC, when the warming climate melted the thick glaciers that pressed down from the north.
As the water rose, the great plain vanished, and slowly the contours of the British Isles and the north-west European coastline were established. Now the primitive landscape is submerged and preserved, tens of metres beneath one of the busiest seas in the world.
Scientists compiled three-dimensional seismic records from oil-prospecting vessels working in the North Sea over 18 months to piece together a landscape covering 23,000 square kilometres, stretching from the coast of eastern England to the edge of northern Europe, just short of the south coast of Norway. The scientists identified the scars left by ancient riverbeds and lakes, some 25 kilometres across, and salt marshes and valleys.
"Some of this land would have made the perfect environment for hunter-gatherers. There is higher land where they could have built their homes, and hills they could see their prey from," said Vince Gaffney, director of Birmingham University's Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity, who led the project with Ken Thomson, a geologist.
The re-creation of the ancient landscape shows that the land beneath the North Sea was probably more than merely a land bridge to Britain.
"The places you wanted to live were the big plains next to the water, and the coastline was way beyond where it is now. This was probably a heartland of population at the time," Professor Gaffney said.
"This completely transforms how we understand the early history of north-western Europe.
"This is the best preserved prehistoric landscape, certainly in the whole of Europe and possibly the world."
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
April 25, 2007
A lost landscape where early humans roamed more than 12,000 years ago has been discovered beneath the North Sea.
A map of the underwater world reveals criss-crossing rivers, giant lakes and gentle hills around which hunter-gatherers made their homes toward the end of the last ice age.
The region was inundated between 18,000 and 6000BC, when the warming climate melted the thick glaciers that pressed down from the north.
As the water rose, the great plain vanished, and slowly the contours of the British Isles and the north-west European coastline were established. Now the primitive landscape is submerged and preserved, tens of metres beneath one of the busiest seas in the world.
Scientists compiled three-dimensional seismic records from oil-prospecting vessels working in the North Sea over 18 months to piece together a landscape covering 23,000 square kilometres, stretching from the coast of eastern England to the edge of northern Europe, just short of the south coast of Norway. The scientists identified the scars left by ancient riverbeds and lakes, some 25 kilometres across, and salt marshes and valleys.
"Some of this land would have made the perfect environment for hunter-gatherers. There is higher land where they could have built their homes, and hills they could see their prey from," said Vince Gaffney, director of Birmingham University's Institute of Archaeology and Antiquity, who led the project with Ken Thomson, a geologist.
The re-creation of the ancient landscape shows that the land beneath the North Sea was probably more than merely a land bridge to Britain.
"The places you wanted to live were the big plains next to the water, and the coastline was way beyond where it is now. This was probably a heartland of population at the time," Professor Gaffney said.
"This completely transforms how we understand the early history of north-western Europe.
"This is the best preserved prehistoric landscape, certainly in the whole of Europe and possibly the world."
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Ancient idols fished out from river Vasistha
April 25, 2007
Eluru, Andhra Pradesh - Panchaloha and bronze idols of Lord Rama and other deities were found in the river Vasistha at Valandhar Revu in West Godavari district.
The reports said the idols were fished out by local fishermen from the river on the next day of Rama Navami.
This incident came to light when the locals observed a festive mood among the fishermen on Monday evening at Ankalavaripalem area in the town.
The fishermen agreed to handover the idols to the government following persuasion by revenue officials. However, yesterday morning they took out a massive rally with the idols in Narsapuram town.
They reached the Tahsildar's office yesterday afternoon to hand over the idols.
Later, the elders formed a temple committee and told the officials that they would keep the idols with them. Despite the efforts of Tahasildar and Archaeology Department Officials to convince them, they brought back the idols to their place.
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
The reports said the idols were fished out by local fishermen from the river on the next day of Rama Navami.
This incident came to light when the locals observed a festive mood among the fishermen on Monday evening at Ankalavaripalem area in the town.
The fishermen agreed to handover the idols to the government following persuasion by revenue officials. However, yesterday morning they took out a massive rally with the idols in Narsapuram town.
They reached the Tahsildar's office yesterday afternoon to hand over the idols.
Later, the elders formed a temple committee and told the officials that they would keep the idols with them. Despite the efforts of Tahasildar and Archaeology Department Officials to convince them, they brought back the idols to their place.
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Short Sands Shipwreck uncovered by storm
__________________________________________________________________________________
Seacoast Online
By Amy Phalon
April 25, 2007
Seacoast Online
By Amy Phalon
April 25, 2007
YORK — The skeleton of an old shipwreck surfaced on Short Sands Beach this week, attracting quite a bit of attention, storytelling and awe.
The wreck was uncovered when the Patriots Day nor'easter's high tides and rough surf displaced several feet of beach sand.
Virginia Spiller of the Old York Historical Society recalls having seen it "some time in the 1960s." Other residents recall having glimpsed the wreck in the 1970s and again in the 1990s.
"It doesn't come out very often. It is really neat to see," said Brett Horr, York's GIS manager.
According to Peter A. Moore, writer of a history column for The York Weekly, when an April nor'easter ravaged York's beaches in 1958, the shipwreck surfaced to similar astonishment and speculation.
York residents interested in maritime history, model boat builders and others took photographs and measurements and held a meeting to discuss the wreck. They concluded that it was a "pinky," a type of fishing vessel also known as a pincke or a pink. Boats of this type had a high, narrow stern and square rigging. They were easily maneuverable along the rocky coast of Maine and were a popular fishing and cargo vessel during the 18th century.
Interestingly, "Boon Island," a popular novel written by Kenneth Roberts, was published in 1956 — just two years before the appearance of the wreck on Short Sands Beach. The book is a historical novel about the wreck of the British ship, the Nottingham Galley, on Boon Island in 1710.
In the novel, the Nottingham's crew is rescued from the island by a pink. The captain of the Nottingham, an unabashed fan of New England and Yankee ingenuity, recognized the rescue boat: "'That's a pink,' Captain Dean said in a strangled voice. 'Nothing like 'em to nose in and out of a rocky coast.'"
One of the members of the 1958 committee voiced that he felt there was a connection between the wreck on Short Sands Beach and the novel, which he and the other members had probably read.
In fact, the wreck was identified when a spring nor'easter uncovered it in 1980. Archaeologist Warren Riess, now at the University of Maine's Darling Center in Walpole, tentatively identified the wreck as a sloop of about Revolutionary War age. It has been mapped and identified as archaeological site ME 497-004. Further study is needed to expand on this identification.
"As such, it is a significant archaeological site," said Arthur Spiess, senior archaeologist with the Maine Historical Preservation Commission. Spiess went on to say, "A major dig would be a useful and interesting thing to do — probably just to look in more detail at the ship's structure and construction, since small artifacts and cargo are probably gone."
Unfortunately for the curious, a major dig on Short Sands Beach would be difficult and costly. Until resources are available, the Historical Preservation Commission likes to leave sites such as this one untouched for future archaeologists.
There is a lot of work in York for future archaeologists. According to Town Planner Steve Burns, "York has 67 shipwrecks. Only 28 have been located and 39 have not been located."
The boat skeleton is only visible at low tide and will soon be returned to its sandy grave as the beach is restored.
York Police Officer Scott Randall warns that people should "not go near it" for safety reasons and because it is a violation of Maine law to disturb archaeological sites such as shipwrecks.
Spiess recommended that if anyone finds what appears to be a shipwreck, he or she should immediately notify the town planner.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
The wreck was uncovered when the Patriots Day nor'easter's high tides and rough surf displaced several feet of beach sand.
Virginia Spiller of the Old York Historical Society recalls having seen it "some time in the 1960s." Other residents recall having glimpsed the wreck in the 1970s and again in the 1990s.
"It doesn't come out very often. It is really neat to see," said Brett Horr, York's GIS manager.
According to Peter A. Moore, writer of a history column for The York Weekly, when an April nor'easter ravaged York's beaches in 1958, the shipwreck surfaced to similar astonishment and speculation.
York residents interested in maritime history, model boat builders and others took photographs and measurements and held a meeting to discuss the wreck. They concluded that it was a "pinky," a type of fishing vessel also known as a pincke or a pink. Boats of this type had a high, narrow stern and square rigging. They were easily maneuverable along the rocky coast of Maine and were a popular fishing and cargo vessel during the 18th century.
Interestingly, "Boon Island," a popular novel written by Kenneth Roberts, was published in 1956 — just two years before the appearance of the wreck on Short Sands Beach. The book is a historical novel about the wreck of the British ship, the Nottingham Galley, on Boon Island in 1710.
In the novel, the Nottingham's crew is rescued from the island by a pink. The captain of the Nottingham, an unabashed fan of New England and Yankee ingenuity, recognized the rescue boat: "'That's a pink,' Captain Dean said in a strangled voice. 'Nothing like 'em to nose in and out of a rocky coast.'"
One of the members of the 1958 committee voiced that he felt there was a connection between the wreck on Short Sands Beach and the novel, which he and the other members had probably read.
In fact, the wreck was identified when a spring nor'easter uncovered it in 1980. Archaeologist Warren Riess, now at the University of Maine's Darling Center in Walpole, tentatively identified the wreck as a sloop of about Revolutionary War age. It has been mapped and identified as archaeological site ME 497-004. Further study is needed to expand on this identification.
"As such, it is a significant archaeological site," said Arthur Spiess, senior archaeologist with the Maine Historical Preservation Commission. Spiess went on to say, "A major dig would be a useful and interesting thing to do — probably just to look in more detail at the ship's structure and construction, since small artifacts and cargo are probably gone."
Unfortunately for the curious, a major dig on Short Sands Beach would be difficult and costly. Until resources are available, the Historical Preservation Commission likes to leave sites such as this one untouched for future archaeologists.
There is a lot of work in York for future archaeologists. According to Town Planner Steve Burns, "York has 67 shipwrecks. Only 28 have been located and 39 have not been located."
The boat skeleton is only visible at low tide and will soon be returned to its sandy grave as the beach is restored.
York Police Officer Scott Randall warns that people should "not go near it" for safety reasons and because it is a violation of Maine law to disturb archaeological sites such as shipwrecks.
Spiess recommended that if anyone finds what appears to be a shipwreck, he or she should immediately notify the town planner.
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Tuesday, April 24, 2007
Historic shipwreck washes up on P.E.I.
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CBC News
April 24, 2007
CBC News
April 24, 2007
The ship's timbers were put together
with wooden pins.(David Keenlyside)
A 10-metre section of a shipwreck, possibly from the 19th century, has washed up on the North Shore of Prince Edward Island.
A portion of a ship's timber hull washed up on a beach near Cavendish last week. Jean Ronahan, who lives in nearby French River, suspects it may have broken loose following erosion near a breakwater in Cavendish.
"It's part of the Island history," Ronahan told CBC News Monday.
"Right along our whole coastline here there was a lot of shipwrecks; there was the Marco Polo and there was another from the Yankee Gale. It's just part of our marine history."
Officials from the Green Park Shipbuilding Museum have inspected the artifact. David Keenlyside, executive director of the P.E.I. Museum and Heritage Foundation, has also looked at the wreck, and is excited by the find.
Keenlyside, an expert in Atlantic archeology, agrees the wreck could have gone down in the Yankee Gale, which was in 1851, but says further investigations are necessary.
The wreck has wooden-peg construction and other evidence of being put together with hand tools.
Ronahan wants the P.E.I. Museum and Heritage Foundation to preserve the artifact. She and her husband anchored the section, which they estimate weighs 700 kilograms, over the weekend out of fear it might wash back out to sea again. She is also concerned curious onlookers might start dismantling it piece by piece.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Monday, April 16, 2007
Ancient city Allianoi to be monitored under water
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Turkish Daily News
April 16, 2007
Near Bergama, the ancient thermal spa Allianoi, which was in danger of being submerged and lost forever to the waters of Yortanlı Dam, the construction of which has been completed, will still be a touristic spot after being flooded by the dam's waters because of a State Water Affairs (DSİ) conservation project.
The project, ratified by the İzmir Committee for the Conservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage, awaits for final approval from the Culture and Tourism Ministry's Scientific Committee. The ancient spa will be covered by a one-meter wall to keep the movable historic ruins and findings above the alluvium soil after the spa was submerged by the Yortanlı Dam and these pieces will be displayed in a museum that will be built close to the dam.
Ayhan Sarıyıldız of the DSİ said the ancient spa will continue to be viewable for tourists thanks to underwater cameras that will be attached to different spa sections and underwater archaeologists will continue to excavate the area.
Noting that they developed the best possible plan in order to save Allianoi and that there was no other alternative available, he said the project will be in line with the Culture and Tourism Ministry's Scientific Committee's decision.
Meanwhile, Allianoi excavation head Ahmet Yaraş opposed the DSİ's project. Yaraş said the project would not save the ancient city, which would be at last submerged in the waters of Yortanlı Dam, adding, “The DSİ offered a project which anticipates a one-meter wall around the ancient city. However, it will not prevent the ancient city from being flooded by the dam's waters. According to them, the solution is to cover the face of historic ruins. Their goal never changed. However, it is not a solution to permit submerging the ancient city under water; it is a deception. Unfortunately, they have mislead politicians and the public by claiming that they would save the ancient city. Their project doesn't intend to protect the ancient city.”
Project is misleading:
He also said they would take the issue to the European Court of Human Rights if the project were ratified by the Culture and Tourism Ministry.
Historically, Allianoi is well known as the land of the god of health Asklepios. The ancient city was established during the Hellenistic Age and reached its peak during the reign of Roman emperor Hadrian. It was considered as one of the most important health centers for nearly 15 centuries, starting from the sixth century B.C. through to the 11th century. Allianoi was famed for its thermal spring center and was known as the most important healing complexes during Hadrian's rule (117-138). Over the last five years, excavations revealed two impressive gates, marble stone-paved streets, shops, houses adorned with mosaics, large town squares, public fountains and rest areas to be used after having a bath. Surprisingly, the latest findings, such as mosaics, marble stones and some wood pieces designed for houses, were the most preserved pieces ever seen on an archaeological site because they had been covered with alluvium soil.
The ancient city is in danger of being submerged and lost forever to the waters of Yortanlı Dam, the construction of which started in 1994. The excavations, kicked off in 1998, have only uncovered the 20 percent of the ancient city.
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
April 16, 2007
Near Bergama, the ancient thermal spa Allianoi, which was in danger of being submerged and lost forever to the waters of Yortanlı Dam, the construction of which has been completed, will still be a touristic spot after being flooded by the dam's waters because of a State Water Affairs (DSİ) conservation project.
The project, ratified by the İzmir Committee for the Conservation of Cultural and Natural Heritage, awaits for final approval from the Culture and Tourism Ministry's Scientific Committee. The ancient spa will be covered by a one-meter wall to keep the movable historic ruins and findings above the alluvium soil after the spa was submerged by the Yortanlı Dam and these pieces will be displayed in a museum that will be built close to the dam.
Ayhan Sarıyıldız of the DSİ said the ancient spa will continue to be viewable for tourists thanks to underwater cameras that will be attached to different spa sections and underwater archaeologists will continue to excavate the area.
Noting that they developed the best possible plan in order to save Allianoi and that there was no other alternative available, he said the project will be in line with the Culture and Tourism Ministry's Scientific Committee's decision.
Meanwhile, Allianoi excavation head Ahmet Yaraş opposed the DSİ's project. Yaraş said the project would not save the ancient city, which would be at last submerged in the waters of Yortanlı Dam, adding, “The DSİ offered a project which anticipates a one-meter wall around the ancient city. However, it will not prevent the ancient city from being flooded by the dam's waters. According to them, the solution is to cover the face of historic ruins. Their goal never changed. However, it is not a solution to permit submerging the ancient city under water; it is a deception. Unfortunately, they have mislead politicians and the public by claiming that they would save the ancient city. Their project doesn't intend to protect the ancient city.”
Project is misleading:
He also said they would take the issue to the European Court of Human Rights if the project were ratified by the Culture and Tourism Ministry.
Historically, Allianoi is well known as the land of the god of health Asklepios. The ancient city was established during the Hellenistic Age and reached its peak during the reign of Roman emperor Hadrian. It was considered as one of the most important health centers for nearly 15 centuries, starting from the sixth century B.C. through to the 11th century. Allianoi was famed for its thermal spring center and was known as the most important healing complexes during Hadrian's rule (117-138). Over the last five years, excavations revealed two impressive gates, marble stone-paved streets, shops, houses adorned with mosaics, large town squares, public fountains and rest areas to be used after having a bath. Surprisingly, the latest findings, such as mosaics, marble stones and some wood pieces designed for houses, were the most preserved pieces ever seen on an archaeological site because they had been covered with alluvium soil.
The ancient city is in danger of being submerged and lost forever to the waters of Yortanlı Dam, the construction of which started in 1994. The excavations, kicked off in 1998, have only uncovered the 20 percent of the ancient city.
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Wednesday, April 11, 2007
Viking ship to retrace route
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IOL
April 11, 2007
Copenhagen - An 11th century Viking longship that has been entirely restored to its original condition will cross the North Sea this summer powered only by its sails, a Danish Viking ship museum said on Tuesday.
The ship will leave Roskilde, Denmark, where the museum is located, on July 1 and is expected to arrive in Dublin on August 14, project leader Preben Rather Soerensen said.
"This is a new challenge. We used the tools the Vikings used to rebuild the Havhingsten fra Glendalough and now we are going to test the ship's resistance," he said.
Sixty-five sailors will man the 30m vessel, which will have no engine and will rely entirely on its typically square Viking sail. The oars will only be used in ports for delicate manoeuvres.
The ship is the biggest Viking ship ever rebuilt.
The ship's hull was found at the bottom of the Roskilde fjord in 1962. The renovation work began in 2000.
Four years later, the Havhingsten fra Glendalough was first tested in the water, and has since sailed several short journeys.
"The ship was built in 1042 in Dublin and now we going to return her to the waters she was meant to sail in," Soerensen said.
The longship took part in clashes between the Anglo-Saxons and Normans in 1050-1060, a period when many Danish Vikings lived in Ireland. The ship was taking part in a raid on the Danish coast when it was sunk by the Danes themselves off of Roskilde.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
IOL
April 11, 2007
Copenhagen - An 11th century Viking longship that has been entirely restored to its original condition will cross the North Sea this summer powered only by its sails, a Danish Viking ship museum said on Tuesday.
The ship will leave Roskilde, Denmark, where the museum is located, on July 1 and is expected to arrive in Dublin on August 14, project leader Preben Rather Soerensen said.
"This is a new challenge. We used the tools the Vikings used to rebuild the Havhingsten fra Glendalough and now we are going to test the ship's resistance," he said.
Sixty-five sailors will man the 30m vessel, which will have no engine and will rely entirely on its typically square Viking sail. The oars will only be used in ports for delicate manoeuvres.
The ship is the biggest Viking ship ever rebuilt.
The ship's hull was found at the bottom of the Roskilde fjord in 1962. The renovation work began in 2000.
Four years later, the Havhingsten fra Glendalough was first tested in the water, and has since sailed several short journeys.
"The ship was built in 1042 in Dublin and now we going to return her to the waters she was meant to sail in," Soerensen said.
The longship took part in clashes between the Anglo-Saxons and Normans in 1050-1060, a period when many Danish Vikings lived in Ireland. The ship was taking part in a raid on the Danish coast when it was sunk by the Danes themselves off of Roskilde.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Monday, April 09, 2007
2,200-year old amphoras contained wine
April 09, 2007
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- Parts of amphoras believed to be 2,200 years old uncovered in a Bosnia-Herzegovina swamp are suspected to have carried wine, experts said Monday.
Snjezana Vasilj, head of a Bosnian team of archaeologists, said a preliminary analysis showed amphoras, found at what are believed remains of the first-ever discovered Illyrian ships, were used for transporting wine, the Bosnian news agency FENA reported.
Late in March, Vasilj and her team found what they believed were the Illyrian ships in the Desilo location, more than 20 feet under the water level of the Hutovo Blato swamp, near Capljina in southern Bosnia.
The Illyrian ships are believed to have sailed from the Adriatic Sea up the Neretva River carrying merchandise to the inland Balkans.
The Illyrian ships, suspected dating back to the 2nd century B.C., are known to historians only through Greek and Roman legends as their physical existence had never been established, Vasilj said.
Illyrians are considered as the earliest inhabitants of what is today Bosnia-Herzegovina, long before the Roman Empire took control of the Balkans.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
SARAJEVO, Bosnia-Herzegovina -- Parts of amphoras believed to be 2,200 years old uncovered in a Bosnia-Herzegovina swamp are suspected to have carried wine, experts said Monday.
Snjezana Vasilj, head of a Bosnian team of archaeologists, said a preliminary analysis showed amphoras, found at what are believed remains of the first-ever discovered Illyrian ships, were used for transporting wine, the Bosnian news agency FENA reported.
Late in March, Vasilj and her team found what they believed were the Illyrian ships in the Desilo location, more than 20 feet under the water level of the Hutovo Blato swamp, near Capljina in southern Bosnia.
The Illyrian ships are believed to have sailed from the Adriatic Sea up the Neretva River carrying merchandise to the inland Balkans.
The Illyrian ships, suspected dating back to the 2nd century B.C., are known to historians only through Greek and Roman legends as their physical existence had never been established, Vasilj said.
Illyrians are considered as the earliest inhabitants of what is today Bosnia-Herzegovina, long before the Roman Empire took control of the Balkans.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Friday, April 06, 2007
Shipwreck Weekend at Texas A&M Uiversity
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Presentations on recent research by TAMU/INA archaeologists
Lectures:
9:00- 9:20 - Mark Polzer: The Anatomy of a Shipwreck Excavation: Bajo de la
Campana Project, Spain.
9:20-9:40 - Andrew Roberts: Great Republic: a Pacific Mail Steamship
9:40-10:00 - Dr. Deborah Carlson: A Monumental Cargo: The Roman Column Wreck
at Kizilburun, Turkey
10:00-10:20 - Katie Custer: End of the Line: The Final Season of the Red River Project
10:20-10:40 - Break
10:40-11:00 - Dr. Filipe Vieira de Castro: Sailing the Pepper Wreck
11-11:20 - Dr. Helen Dewolf: Conserving Artifacts from the Red River Excavation
11:20-11:40 - Dr. Wayne Smith: New Technologies in Artifact Conservation
Open House:
1:00 - 3:00pm
Open Tour of the Nautical Archaeology Program Laboratories:
Conservation Labs
Old World and New World Labs
Ship Reconstruction Lab
Ship Modeling Lab
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Open to the public. All ages welcome. Refreshments provided.
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Saturday, April 14, 2007
Presentations on recent research by TAMU/INA archaeologists
Lectures:
9:00- 9:20 - Mark Polzer: The Anatomy of a Shipwreck Excavation: Bajo de la
Campana Project, Spain.
9:20-9:40 - Andrew Roberts: Great Republic: a Pacific Mail Steamship
9:40-10:00 - Dr. Deborah Carlson: A Monumental Cargo: The Roman Column Wreck
at Kizilburun, Turkey
10:00-10:20 - Katie Custer: End of the Line: The Final Season of the Red River Project
10:20-10:40 - Break
10:40-11:00 - Dr. Filipe Vieira de Castro: Sailing the Pepper Wreck
11-11:20 - Dr. Helen Dewolf: Conserving Artifacts from the Red River Excavation
11:20-11:40 - Dr. Wayne Smith: New Technologies in Artifact Conservation
Open House:
1:00 - 3:00pm
Open Tour of the Nautical Archaeology Program Laboratories:
Conservation Labs
Old World and New World Labs
Ship Reconstruction Lab
Ship Modeling Lab
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Thursday, April 05, 2007
Chile to resume search for old sub
April 05, 2007
The Chilean navy and marine scientists will try again next week to find Latin America's first submarine - a manually operated steel tube that sank off the coast of Chile 140 years ago.
A first attempt to locate the "Flach," designed in the 1860s by German immigrant Karl Flach, failed in December.
"Five days at sea were not enough," the organisers of the search said in statement.
This time, scientists and sailors will spend twice as long at sea with better resources. Sebastian Pinera, a Chilean billionaire who narrowly lost Chile's 2005 presidential election, is helping finance the project.
"The search for the Flach has become a debt which we owe our naval history and which must be paid," said the organisers.
They described the submarine as the first in Latin America and only the fifth in the world to make a successful underwater voyage.
Flach built his vessel at the request of the Chilean government to foil Spain's ambitions in the region. It made several successful test voyages in 1866.
But on May 3 of that year, it sank in the Bay of Valparaiso, 140km west of the capital Santiago. The crew - two Chileans, two Frenchmen and seven Germans, including Flach and his 15-year-old son - all died.
Three days later, the crew of a British frigate located the vessel and tried to raise it. But it was stuck fast in thick mud, some 50 metres (165 feet) below the surface.
Since then, no one has seen it.
The search team identified an area measuring roughly two square miles (5 square km) where they think the vessel lies. They checked 20% of it in December and will start to search the remainder next Wednesday.
Topped by two cannons and an entry hatch, the Flach relied on manpower to move. Crewmembers had to turn handles at the back of the vessel to power the propellers.
Before its launch, only the United States and a handful of European nations had successfully tested submarines.
"There's a high probability we'll find it," Pedro Pujante, a Spanish marine scientist involved in the project, told Reuters.
____
www.schnorkel.blogspot.comThe Chilean navy and marine scientists will try again next week to find Latin America's first submarine - a manually operated steel tube that sank off the coast of Chile 140 years ago.
A first attempt to locate the "Flach," designed in the 1860s by German immigrant Karl Flach, failed in December.
"Five days at sea were not enough," the organisers of the search said in statement.
This time, scientists and sailors will spend twice as long at sea with better resources. Sebastian Pinera, a Chilean billionaire who narrowly lost Chile's 2005 presidential election, is helping finance the project.
"The search for the Flach has become a debt which we owe our naval history and which must be paid," said the organisers.
They described the submarine as the first in Latin America and only the fifth in the world to make a successful underwater voyage.
Flach built his vessel at the request of the Chilean government to foil Spain's ambitions in the region. It made several successful test voyages in 1866.
But on May 3 of that year, it sank in the Bay of Valparaiso, 140km west of the capital Santiago. The crew - two Chileans, two Frenchmen and seven Germans, including Flach and his 15-year-old son - all died.
Three days later, the crew of a British frigate located the vessel and tried to raise it. But it was stuck fast in thick mud, some 50 metres (165 feet) below the surface.
Since then, no one has seen it.
The search team identified an area measuring roughly two square miles (5 square km) where they think the vessel lies. They checked 20% of it in December and will start to search the remainder next Wednesday.
Topped by two cannons and an entry hatch, the Flach relied on manpower to move. Crewmembers had to turn handles at the back of the vessel to power the propellers.
Before its launch, only the United States and a handful of European nations had successfully tested submarines.
"There's a high probability we'll find it," Pedro Pujante, a Spanish marine scientist involved in the project, told Reuters.
____
WWII wreck gets war grave status
Two sisters from Sussex have finally won the right for the wreck of their father's World War II ship to be classed as an official war grave.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) has agreed to grant the SS Storaa, which was torpedoed off the Hastings coast in 1943, full military protection.
Rosemary Fogg and Valerie Ledgard, from Worthing, won a court case and then an appeal in 2006 to protect the vessel.
But the MoD had been taking advice about the ownership of the wreck.
The women are the daughters of Petty Officer James Varndell, who died with 21 others when the merchant ship SS Storaa was torpedoed during WWII.
'Look not touch'
They argued in court that the ship should be classed as a war grave because it was on military duties when it sank.
Mrs Ledgard welcomed the decision, saying: "It's not a complete forgotten scene, someone will actually write down properly that the SS Storaa is a war grave."
Derek Twigg, Under Secretary of State for Defence, said: "Following the ruling by the Court of Appeal in October last year... the MoD reconsidered its stance regarding the designation of SS Storaa as a war grave.
"We have now agreed to designate the wreck as a protected place under the act.
"The wreck will be protected from unauthorised interference by divers who will only be allowed to dive on a 'look but don't touch or enter' basis once designated, any physical interference with the wreck would require prior licensing by MoD."
The SS Storaa was attacked by German E-boats as it transported steel in convoy to a weapons factory in Cardiff.
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Wednesday, April 04, 2007
HMCS Sackville sailing into her last battle
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The Windsor Star
By Victor Suthren
April 04, 2007
The Windsor Star
By Victor Suthren
April 04, 2007
The little ship rides quietly alongside the jetties of Canada's East Coast naval dockyard in Halifax, her boxlike, blue-and-white form in quaint contrast to the sleek greyhound lines of the modern destroyers and frigates that surround her. HMCS Sackville is the only remaining example of the more than 120 corvettes built in Canada during the Second World War.
Taken from the design of whale-hunting ships, corvettes were designed as inexpensive submarine hunters that could be quickly built in large numbers for Canada's rapidly growing navy. The corklike little ships -- seamen used to grumble that they would roll in a heavy dew -- became the workhorses of the Royal Canadian Navy's battle with the U-Boat "wolf packs" of Nazi Germany and the symbol of Canada's remarkable transition from a country with a tiny, vestigial navy in 1939 to a nation with the third-largest of the Allied navies.
With the Tribal class destroyer HMCS Haida now a museum ship in Hamilton, Sackville is one of the few remaining icons of Canada's naval coming-of-age during the grim North Atlantic battles and likely more than any other vessel can be considered the navy's, and Canada's, emotional flagship.
Now, the survival of this gallant little ship and all that she means is in peril.
HMCS Sackville was built at Saint John in 1941, and from 1942 to 1944 served in the Atlantic convoy battles as part of the famous Barber Pole Group of escorts distinguished by the red-and-white striped funnel marking that is perpetuated on the ships of Canada's Maritime Command to this day.
DEPTH CHARGES
In August 1942, Sackville attacked a U-boat with depth charges and scored a likely "kill," and then 90 minutes later used her deck gun to damage severely another surfaced submarine.
Damaged in action in September 1943, Sackville was assigned to training duties, and then was selected for conversion to a Canadian Naval Auxiliary Vessel (CNAV), an action that saved her from the scrapyard fate of Canada's other corvettes.
Sackville sailed for many years as a research vessel until she was again saved by the remarkable volunteer efforts of a group of dedicated Canadians who led her painstaking restoration to her wartime appearance. Now the ship is supported by a non-profit organization, the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust, whose declared mission is "to preserve and maintain the ship as Canada's naval memorial to all those who served in the Naval Service, and to operate the ship as a naval museum for the benefit of all Canadians."
During the summer months, Sackville is alongside Halifax's Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, where it is one of the most popular attractions on the waterfront. But even with this popularity and the dedicated work of the trust, the survival of the little ship is increasingly in question.
The cost of keeping the half-century-old hull afloat, the ravages of a winter climate and the many other expenses of maintaining what is in effect both a ship afloat and a working museum, are rapidly outdistancing the capacity of the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust and other partners to provide for her.
Canada's navy, beset with its own budgetary and operational demands, quietly helps out where it can, but even this vital support is threatened by the navy's need to use every dollar and pair of hands in keeping our modern fleet at sea and capable. It is likely that, to the great anguish of the men and women of the Memorial Trust, the navy, and every Canadian who understands what the little ship means, it will soon be impossible to keep this central symbol of Canada's naval heritage from the wrecker's hammer.
No Canadian who loves the sea and what we have achieved on it as a nation can remember without regret that the beloved champion schooner Bluenose died an ignominious death as a cut-down tramp cargo boat on a Haitian reef in 1946. To lose Sackville because of a similar lack of concern would be a sad tragedy of almost equal measure.
NAVAL TRADITIONS
The Americans have USS Constitution in Boston Harbour to remind them of their proud naval traditions, and Britain retains Nelson's flagship, HMS Victory, at Portsmouth.
The dogged little rust-streaked hull of Sackville represents those vital years when Canadians went to sea in numbers for the first time and were bloodied by the ruthless efficiency of the U-boats, but fought back in the icy wastes of the North Atlantic to finally win the Battle of the Atlantic: She is Canada's own emotional flagship.
But there is a new initiative in Halifax that may be the saving of the little ship and her preservation for all Canadians to experience in a setting of dignity and honour, and one that provides for a much wider learning experience.
A consortium of committed Haligonians has proposed a major waterfront redevelopment that would incorporate the existing Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and create a dramatic heritage and marine-based activity complex to be known as the Queen's Landing. A central concept is to place Sackville in an indoor setting, out of water, in a glass-fronted "grand hall" that would be surrounded by a state-of-the-art naval history museum gallery that will incorporate the collections of the Maritime Museum and the navy's own small museum at Halifax.
Sackville, as Canada's Naval Memorial, would be preserved, animated and displayed for generations of Canadians to experience and treasure. Should this Queen's Landing project find the support it needs, the little ship will have won through its last battle for survival, one that began against the U-boats of Nazi Germany so long ago. For all Canadians' sake, this is a battle she should and must win.
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Taken from the design of whale-hunting ships, corvettes were designed as inexpensive submarine hunters that could be quickly built in large numbers for Canada's rapidly growing navy. The corklike little ships -- seamen used to grumble that they would roll in a heavy dew -- became the workhorses of the Royal Canadian Navy's battle with the U-Boat "wolf packs" of Nazi Germany and the symbol of Canada's remarkable transition from a country with a tiny, vestigial navy in 1939 to a nation with the third-largest of the Allied navies.
With the Tribal class destroyer HMCS Haida now a museum ship in Hamilton, Sackville is one of the few remaining icons of Canada's naval coming-of-age during the grim North Atlantic battles and likely more than any other vessel can be considered the navy's, and Canada's, emotional flagship.
Now, the survival of this gallant little ship and all that she means is in peril.
HMCS Sackville was built at Saint John in 1941, and from 1942 to 1944 served in the Atlantic convoy battles as part of the famous Barber Pole Group of escorts distinguished by the red-and-white striped funnel marking that is perpetuated on the ships of Canada's Maritime Command to this day.
DEPTH CHARGES
In August 1942, Sackville attacked a U-boat with depth charges and scored a likely "kill," and then 90 minutes later used her deck gun to damage severely another surfaced submarine.
Damaged in action in September 1943, Sackville was assigned to training duties, and then was selected for conversion to a Canadian Naval Auxiliary Vessel (CNAV), an action that saved her from the scrapyard fate of Canada's other corvettes.
Sackville sailed for many years as a research vessel until she was again saved by the remarkable volunteer efforts of a group of dedicated Canadians who led her painstaking restoration to her wartime appearance. Now the ship is supported by a non-profit organization, the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust, whose declared mission is "to preserve and maintain the ship as Canada's naval memorial to all those who served in the Naval Service, and to operate the ship as a naval museum for the benefit of all Canadians."
During the summer months, Sackville is alongside Halifax's Maritime Museum of the Atlantic, where it is one of the most popular attractions on the waterfront. But even with this popularity and the dedicated work of the trust, the survival of the little ship is increasingly in question.
The cost of keeping the half-century-old hull afloat, the ravages of a winter climate and the many other expenses of maintaining what is in effect both a ship afloat and a working museum, are rapidly outdistancing the capacity of the Canadian Naval Memorial Trust and other partners to provide for her.
Canada's navy, beset with its own budgetary and operational demands, quietly helps out where it can, but even this vital support is threatened by the navy's need to use every dollar and pair of hands in keeping our modern fleet at sea and capable. It is likely that, to the great anguish of the men and women of the Memorial Trust, the navy, and every Canadian who understands what the little ship means, it will soon be impossible to keep this central symbol of Canada's naval heritage from the wrecker's hammer.
No Canadian who loves the sea and what we have achieved on it as a nation can remember without regret that the beloved champion schooner Bluenose died an ignominious death as a cut-down tramp cargo boat on a Haitian reef in 1946. To lose Sackville because of a similar lack of concern would be a sad tragedy of almost equal measure.
NAVAL TRADITIONS
The Americans have USS Constitution in Boston Harbour to remind them of their proud naval traditions, and Britain retains Nelson's flagship, HMS Victory, at Portsmouth.
The dogged little rust-streaked hull of Sackville represents those vital years when Canadians went to sea in numbers for the first time and were bloodied by the ruthless efficiency of the U-boats, but fought back in the icy wastes of the North Atlantic to finally win the Battle of the Atlantic: She is Canada's own emotional flagship.
But there is a new initiative in Halifax that may be the saving of the little ship and her preservation for all Canadians to experience in a setting of dignity and honour, and one that provides for a much wider learning experience.
A consortium of committed Haligonians has proposed a major waterfront redevelopment that would incorporate the existing Maritime Museum of the Atlantic and create a dramatic heritage and marine-based activity complex to be known as the Queen's Landing. A central concept is to place Sackville in an indoor setting, out of water, in a glass-fronted "grand hall" that would be surrounded by a state-of-the-art naval history museum gallery that will incorporate the collections of the Maritime Museum and the navy's own small museum at Halifax.
Sackville, as Canada's Naval Memorial, would be preserved, animated and displayed for generations of Canadians to experience and treasure. Should this Queen's Landing project find the support it needs, the little ship will have won through its last battle for survival, one that began against the U-boats of Nazi Germany so long ago. For all Canadians' sake, this is a battle she should and must win.
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Tuesday, April 03, 2007
'Egypt's sunken treasures' attracts 1.2 million visitors
__________________________________________________________________________________
Hilti
April 03, 2007
The "Egypt's sunken treasures" exhibition has attracted 1.2 million visitors until now. The exhibition is sponsored by the Hilti Foundation.
The exhibition's finds that were recovered by undersea archaeologist Franck Goddio from sunken cities off the Egyptian coast over the last ten years, proved a tremendous draw in Paris' Grand Palais, where they were shown after premiering in Berlin. The exhibition's viewing hours were extended several times due to the long lines of visitors. Towards the end of the run in Paris, visitors were able to view "Egypt's sunken treasures" until midnight.
The exhibition is certain to maintain this level of interest when making its third stop, at the Art and Exhibition Hall of the Federal Republic of Germany, in Bonn, where it will appear between April 5, 2007 and January 27, 2008.
Egbert Appel, General Manager of the Hilti Foundation: "The interest in the "Egypt's sunken treasures" exhibition is tremendous! The comprehensive support of Franck Goddio's work is one emphasis of the current cultural engagement of the Hilti Foundation. The significant number of visitors is not only an acknowledgement for Franck Goddio and his team, who have worked on the recovery and research of the artifacts and results shown in this exhibition for more than ten years. They also strengthen the Hilti Foundation's future resolve to sustainably support innovative projects that lead to new discoveries having worldwide appeal and significance."
Established and funded through the years by the Martin Hilti Family Trust, the Hilti Foundation is supported jointly by the Hilti Corporation and the Trust. The Hilti Foundation promotes selected sustainable projects and initiatives, particularly in the cultural, social and educational fields. The Martin Hilti Family Trust is the sole shareholder of the Hilti Group, which is active worldwide.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Hilti
April 03, 2007
The "Egypt's sunken treasures" exhibition has attracted 1.2 million visitors until now. The exhibition is sponsored by the Hilti Foundation.
The exhibition's finds that were recovered by undersea archaeologist Franck Goddio from sunken cities off the Egyptian coast over the last ten years, proved a tremendous draw in Paris' Grand Palais, where they were shown after premiering in Berlin. The exhibition's viewing hours were extended several times due to the long lines of visitors. Towards the end of the run in Paris, visitors were able to view "Egypt's sunken treasures" until midnight.
The exhibition is certain to maintain this level of interest when making its third stop, at the Art and Exhibition Hall of the Federal Republic of Germany, in Bonn, where it will appear between April 5, 2007 and January 27, 2008.
Egbert Appel, General Manager of the Hilti Foundation: "The interest in the "Egypt's sunken treasures" exhibition is tremendous! The comprehensive support of Franck Goddio's work is one emphasis of the current cultural engagement of the Hilti Foundation. The significant number of visitors is not only an acknowledgement for Franck Goddio and his team, who have worked on the recovery and research of the artifacts and results shown in this exhibition for more than ten years. They also strengthen the Hilti Foundation's future resolve to sustainably support innovative projects that lead to new discoveries having worldwide appeal and significance."
Established and funded through the years by the Martin Hilti Family Trust, the Hilti Foundation is supported jointly by the Hilti Corporation and the Trust. The Hilti Foundation promotes selected sustainable projects and initiatives, particularly in the cultural, social and educational fields. The Martin Hilti Family Trust is the sole shareholder of the Hilti Group, which is active worldwide.
____
www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Monday, April 02, 2007
Millionaire diver wins right to explore Lusitania wreck
By David Sharrock
April 02, 2007
DUBLIN, Ireland -- Mystery surrounding the sinking of the Lusitania may be resolved after the American owner of the Cunard liner won his case to dive on the wreck.
The decision by the Supreme Court in Dublin, the highest court in the Irish Republic, to overturn a refusal for an exploration licence from the Arts and Heritage Ministry clears the way for Gregg Bemis to realise a 40-year dream to uncover what made "the Greyhound of the Sea" sink so fast after she was torpedoed by a German U-boat off southwest Ireland in May 1915.
The Lusitania – which held the speed record for crossing the Atlantic until 1909, when she lost it to her sister ship, the Mauretania – sank in 18 minutes, taking 1,198 people, including 100 children, with her.
The blast that sank the 790ft (241m) vessel came from a secondary explosion on the starboard side after the torpedo, fired by U-20, hit the Lusitania under the bridge.
The sinking caused massive controversy because the vessel was carrying civilian passengers between New York and Liverpool, including eminent and wealthy politicians, artists, academics and businessmen.
The captain of the German U-boat, Walther Schwieger, was branded a war criminal, and the furore added to pressure on the US to enter the Great War on Britain's side. But since the Lusitania sank, eight miles off the Old Head of Kinsale, rumours and conspiracy theories have abounded about her fate.
In 1993 Robert Ballard, who discovered the wreck of the Titanic, said that he believed that the dust in the coal bunkers would have been thrown into the air by the vibration from the torpedo impact; the resulting cloud then being ignited by a spark and causing the second explosion.
But that theory has been discounted by the damp conditions and the sudden rush of seawater into the ship through the hull's damaged plates.
The U-boat captain has also been accused of lying about the number of torpedoes fired at the stricken vessel. Marine forensic investigators have suggested that an explosion in the ship's steam-generating plant may have been the cause.
Mr Bemis hopes that his court victory will clear the way for the true story to emerge. The venture capitalist from a wealthy food-packaging family suspects that the Lusitania was secretly carrying munitions to Britain and that these caused the huge explosion.
Mr Bemis, 78, is planning a dive on the Lusitania, lying in 300ft of water, this summer. But his main research will be conducted next year. "All the equipment that I need has already been booked for this year," he told Irish newspapers.
"There is some work that can be done that I think will be very advantageous to my ultimate dive, preliminary survey work."
The exploration will be complicated because the Lusitania is lying on its ruptured, starboard side. Mr Bemis hopes that his team can cut through the port side and make his way down to the damage using a "saturated" diving system.
"They will always be under pressure equivalent to the depth of the Lusitania, so they can put in shifts of two or three hours working on the bottom," he said. The court granted Mr Bemis a five-year licence to dive after a protracted legal battle with the Arts Ministry.
The wreck was declared a protected site, placing an underwater heritage order on it to deter treasure hunters. That was in response to reports that the art collector Sir Hugh Lane, one of the passengers who perished, was transporting paintings by Titian, Monet and Ru-bens in sealed containers.
Mr Bemis became a co-own-er of the wreck in 1968, a year after it was sold for £1,000 by the Liverpool & London War Risks Insurance Association to John Light, a former US navy diver. "There was one other bidder: the British secret service," Mr Bemis claimed. "Obviously they were too cheap to put up the cash." By 1982 Mr Bemis's two partners in the salvage venture had given up in the face of mounting bills and he bought them out. "We'd spent a lot of money by then. My kids reckon I'm like a dog with a bone."
The next challenge was in the courts. "Everyone has their point of view. The Irish Government said no one should touch it but I disagreed. They were in the wrong – it is my property."
Mr Bemis made his first visit to see his property in 2005 at the age of 76, but he is under pressure from his family not to return. "I reckon it might have been an age-depth record. I'm an experienced recreational diver so I went down but was only there for five minutes. But what I saw of her was very beautiful."
The venture may cost £3 million, which Mr Bemis hopes to recoup by making a film and mounting an exhibition of recovered artefacts.
He owns anything on the liner that belonged to Cunard, while luggage and cargo belongs to the Irish authorities as receiver of the wreck.
Nevertheless, it is not the lure of gold or fine art that has driven Mr Bemis's passion for the Lusitania, but the mystery of its final voyage. "It's almost impossible to sink a vessel of that size so fast. I don't agree with government cover-ups. To prove what really caused it to sink would help bring real closure for the relatives of those who perished."
Gregg Bemis, is a venture capitalist and entrepreneur.
He has run unsuccessfully three times as a Republican candidate in New Mexico.
Bemis also has a keen interest in the Estonia, a ferry that went down in the Baltic in 1994, taking 852 lives. He suspected foul play and conducted an unauthorised dive in 2000.
Last days of the Lusitania
Departs New York at noon, May 1, 1915, amid German warnings to its 1,256 passengers
May 6, Lusitania's captain receives warning that U-20 is active off southern Irish coast
May 7, Lusitania alters course after a new warning, heading northwest to approach coast, thinking that U-boat would stay in open waters
U-20, low on fuel and heading for home, spots Lusitania at 1pm. Steaming at 20 knots into Queenstown (new Cobh) harbour
U-20 captain gives order to fire torpedo at 2.20pm as Lusitania crosses right in front of submarine. A second explosion occurs immediately after torpedo hits
Lusitania sinks at 2.28pm
DUBLIN, Ireland -- Mystery surrounding the sinking of the Lusitania may be resolved after the American owner of the Cunard liner won his case to dive on the wreck.
The decision by the Supreme Court in Dublin, the highest court in the Irish Republic, to overturn a refusal for an exploration licence from the Arts and Heritage Ministry clears the way for Gregg Bemis to realise a 40-year dream to uncover what made "the Greyhound of the Sea" sink so fast after she was torpedoed by a German U-boat off southwest Ireland in May 1915.
The Lusitania – which held the speed record for crossing the Atlantic until 1909, when she lost it to her sister ship, the Mauretania – sank in 18 minutes, taking 1,198 people, including 100 children, with her.
The blast that sank the 790ft (241m) vessel came from a secondary explosion on the starboard side after the torpedo, fired by U-20, hit the Lusitania under the bridge.
The sinking caused massive controversy because the vessel was carrying civilian passengers between New York and Liverpool, including eminent and wealthy politicians, artists, academics and businessmen.
The captain of the German U-boat, Walther Schwieger, was branded a war criminal, and the furore added to pressure on the US to enter the Great War on Britain's side. But since the Lusitania sank, eight miles off the Old Head of Kinsale, rumours and conspiracy theories have abounded about her fate.
In 1993 Robert Ballard, who discovered the wreck of the Titanic, said that he believed that the dust in the coal bunkers would have been thrown into the air by the vibration from the torpedo impact; the resulting cloud then being ignited by a spark and causing the second explosion.
But that theory has been discounted by the damp conditions and the sudden rush of seawater into the ship through the hull's damaged plates.
The U-boat captain has also been accused of lying about the number of torpedoes fired at the stricken vessel. Marine forensic investigators have suggested that an explosion in the ship's steam-generating plant may have been the cause.
Mr Bemis hopes that his court victory will clear the way for the true story to emerge. The venture capitalist from a wealthy food-packaging family suspects that the Lusitania was secretly carrying munitions to Britain and that these caused the huge explosion.
Mr Bemis, 78, is planning a dive on the Lusitania, lying in 300ft of water, this summer. But his main research will be conducted next year. "All the equipment that I need has already been booked for this year," he told Irish newspapers.
"There is some work that can be done that I think will be very advantageous to my ultimate dive, preliminary survey work."
The exploration will be complicated because the Lusitania is lying on its ruptured, starboard side. Mr Bemis hopes that his team can cut through the port side and make his way down to the damage using a "saturated" diving system.
"They will always be under pressure equivalent to the depth of the Lusitania, so they can put in shifts of two or three hours working on the bottom," he said. The court granted Mr Bemis a five-year licence to dive after a protracted legal battle with the Arts Ministry.
The wreck was declared a protected site, placing an underwater heritage order on it to deter treasure hunters. That was in response to reports that the art collector Sir Hugh Lane, one of the passengers who perished, was transporting paintings by Titian, Monet and Ru-bens in sealed containers.
Mr Bemis became a co-own-er of the wreck in 1968, a year after it was sold for £1,000 by the Liverpool & London War Risks Insurance Association to John Light, a former US navy diver. "There was one other bidder: the British secret service," Mr Bemis claimed. "Obviously they were too cheap to put up the cash." By 1982 Mr Bemis's two partners in the salvage venture had given up in the face of mounting bills and he bought them out. "We'd spent a lot of money by then. My kids reckon I'm like a dog with a bone."
The next challenge was in the courts. "Everyone has their point of view. The Irish Government said no one should touch it but I disagreed. They were in the wrong – it is my property."
Mr Bemis made his first visit to see his property in 2005 at the age of 76, but he is under pressure from his family not to return. "I reckon it might have been an age-depth record. I'm an experienced recreational diver so I went down but was only there for five minutes. But what I saw of her was very beautiful."
The venture may cost £3 million, which Mr Bemis hopes to recoup by making a film and mounting an exhibition of recovered artefacts.
He owns anything on the liner that belonged to Cunard, while luggage and cargo belongs to the Irish authorities as receiver of the wreck.
Nevertheless, it is not the lure of gold or fine art that has driven Mr Bemis's passion for the Lusitania, but the mystery of its final voyage. "It's almost impossible to sink a vessel of that size so fast. I don't agree with government cover-ups. To prove what really caused it to sink would help bring real closure for the relatives of those who perished."
Gregg Bemis, is a venture capitalist and entrepreneur.
He has run unsuccessfully three times as a Republican candidate in New Mexico.
Bemis also has a keen interest in the Estonia, a ferry that went down in the Baltic in 1994, taking 852 lives. He suspected foul play and conducted an unauthorised dive in 2000.
Last days of the Lusitania
Departs New York at noon, May 1, 1915, amid German warnings to its 1,256 passengers
May 6, Lusitania's captain receives warning that U-20 is active off southern Irish coast
May 7, Lusitania alters course after a new warning, heading northwest to approach coast, thinking that U-boat would stay in open waters
U-20, low on fuel and heading for home, spots Lusitania at 1pm. Steaming at 20 knots into Queenstown (new Cobh) harbour
U-20 captain gives order to fire torpedo at 2.20pm as Lusitania crosses right in front of submarine. A second explosion occurs immediately after torpedo hits
Lusitania sinks at 2.28pm
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
Sunday, April 01, 2007
Historic pottery found in river
Changes in water erosion while work takes place on a new bridge over a north Devon river has led to the discovery of centuries-old pottery.
Archaeological enthusiast Mike Palmer was among the first to find it on the River Taw in Barnstaple, where the tidal river has scoured the sand bank.
Pottery has been produced in Barnstaple since the medieval period.
Now the finds, some from as early as the 13th Century, will be displayed at the Barnstaple and North Devon Museum.
Complete vessels
The newly-discovered site lies on an isolated sand bank just downriver from Barnstaple Castle.
Mr Palmer has found some complete vessels, including forms that have not been seen before and some so-called wasters - over-fired or unfinished pieces - that were thrown into the river.
Mr Palmer said: "I was surprised that I haven't had to dig anything there, the river does the work and this just washes up."
"The 17th Century pieces show that most of it was waste and the nearest place to put it was in the river, but there's a lot of pottery there from the 13th and 14th century too."
Once the finds, being collected by experts and volunteers, have been washed and sorted they will be studied by pottery expert John Allan of Exeter Archaeology.
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www.dofundodomar.blogspot.com
