Marine Archaeology

Marine archaeology just sounds exciting.

Spending your life sailing the high seas in search of legendary shipwrecks. Diving among treasure-laden ships in search of sunken riches. If only it were true! Marine archaeologists actually spend far more time on land than they do out at sea. There is also a tremendous difference between treasure hunting (think exploitation and profit) and marine archaeology (think preservation and education).

However, there is no denying that even without the allure of deep-sea treasure, marine archaeology is an exotic profession and a great career choice for someone who loves spending time in and on the water. It is particularly suited for individuals who are not afraid of a challenging work environment as marine archeologists must often carry out their investigations in very complex, unpredictable, and often dangerous situations. Marine archaeology also requires you to master a unique skill set (diving, navigation) and the use of highly specialized tools and equipment (magnetic and acoustic remote sensing equipment to locate sites; infrared and optical equipment to record and study them).

But exactly what is marine archaeology?

Marine archaeology is part of the general field of archaeology. Archaeology is the study of the ancient and recent human past through the recovery and analysis of the physical remains of material culture (commonly known as “artifacts”), structures, human remains, or animals and plant remains used by humans.[1]

Marine archaeology then is the study of past human cultures, emphasizing how humans interacted with the world’s oceans, lakes, and river systems.[2] While the exploration of shipwrecks is indeed what often captures the public’s interest, marine archeology also investigates sunken airplanes, bridges, harbors, coastal dwellings, and cities and structures that are now covered by water due to rising sea levels.[3] In fact, there are more historic artifacts under the sea than in all the world’s museums combined.[4]

Marine archaeology can be divided into two separate but related fields. Nautical archaeology represents the larger of the two fields and focuses on “the study of the construction and operation of all types of prehistoric and historic watercraft.” [5] Nautical archaeologists are primarily concerned with ships’ technical and social aspects, whether underwater or on land.[6] The other field of marine archaeology is “underwater archaeology,” which is concerned with the archaeology of sites located underwater, such as ancient land sites inundated after the last ice age, aircraft wrecks, cities and harbors now submerged by sea-level change, submerged Indigenous habitation sites, sinkholes or bogs where people placed offerings or buried their dead, refuse sites and sometimes isolated finds such as jettisoned objects.[7] And about that those shipwrecks laden with silver, gold and precious jewels? Marine archaeologists abide by a very strict code of ethics.[8] As one author wrote, to “practice good archaeology the data has to have primacy over the dollar.”[9]

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Citations

1. What is Maritime Archaeology, Australasian Institute for Maritime Archaeology.
2. National Marine Sanctuaries Website, National Oceanic & Atmospheric Administration.
3. Discovery of Sound in the Sea Website, University of Rhode Island.
4. 10 Unbelievable Facts About the Ocean, The Real Word.
5. What is Underwater Archaeology, Advisory Council on Underwater Archaeology.
6. What is Maritime Archaeology, Australasian Institute for Maritime Archaeology.
7. What is Maritime Archaeology, Australasian Institute for Maritime Archaeology.
8. Ethics Statement, Maritime Archaeological and Historical Society.
9. Coroneos, C. (2006). The ethics and values of maritime archaeology. In M. Staniforth & M. Nash (Eds.), Maritime archaeology. Australian approaches.