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From Newswise

Resting in less than 10 feet of Caribbean seawater, the wreckage of Quedagh Merchant, the ship abandoned by the scandalous 17th century pirate Captain William Kidd as he raced to New York in an ill-fated attempt to clear his name, has escaped discovery -- until now.

An underwater archaeology team from Indiana University announced today (Dec. 13) the discovery of the remnants.

IU marine protection authority Charles Beeker said his team has been licensed to study the wreckage and to convert the site into an underwater preserve, where it will be accessible to the public.

Beeker, director of Academic Diving and Underwater Science Programs in IU Bloomington's School of Health, Physical Education and Recreation, said it is remarkable that the wreck has remained undiscovered all these years given its location, just 70 feet off the coast of Catalina Island in the Dominican Republic, and because it has been sought actively by treasure hunters.

"I've been on literally thousands of shipwrecks in my career," Beeker said.

"This is one of the first sites I've been on where I haven't seen any looting. We've got a shipwreck in crystal clear, pristine water that's amazingly untouched.

We want to keep it that way, so we made the announcement now to ensure the site's protection from looters."

Read more...

From Todays Zaman

The Ertuğrul, which departed from İstanbul on July 14, 1889, upon the decree of Abdülhamid II, continued its travel by visiting the ports along the route.

The vessel was welcomed by the Muslims living in the visited places. Large groups head to the frigate to see what is inside.

Eleven months after departure the frigate arrives in Japan.

The date is June 7, 1890, when the vessel arrives in Yokohama port in Japan. This was also a sign of diplomatic relations between Japan and the Ottoman state.

In response to a visit of friendship paid by the uncle of the Japanese emperor to İstanbul in 1887, Sultan Abdülhamid II ordered a reciprocal visit.

The Ertuğrul, constructed at the İstanbul shipyards, was able to move both by sail and by steam engine. The primary means of movement was, however, the sail. The engine was supplemental.

It was a wooden vessel with a weight of 2,400 tons and was 25 years old. One year prior to its final journey, its wooden parts were repaired, but its machinery and boilers remained untouched. The delegation leader was Col. Osman Bey and the vessel’s commander was Lt. Col. Ali Bey.

The vessel had a crew of 607, including 56 military officers. That year young lieutenants who graduated from the naval college were assigned to duty on the vessel.

The frigate was charged with carrying valuable gifts from Abdülhamid II for the Japanese emperor while young graduates would also have the opportunity to further their experience on the open seas.

At the same time, the power and strength of the Ottoman Empire would be displayed. It would also be stressed that Muslims living in different parts of the world were not alone.

The caliph and sultan’s determination and will to protect Muslims throughout the world would be demonstrated.

During the journey of the frigate, Col. Osman was promoted to the rank of admiral.

From VietNamNet Bridge


As many as 5,875 antique objects made of Chu Dau pottery, dating back to the 15th and 16th centuries have just been discovered.

The discovery took place off the central coast of Cu Lao Cham in the town of Hoi An, Quang Nam Province.

The find included ceramic objects comprising bowls, dishes, tea-sets, boxes and jars, most of them made from white enameled pottery. The items are decorated with pictures of daisies, birds, fish and landscapes.

Over 15,900 antiques have been discovered in sunken ships off Cu Lao Cham since 2004.

Archaeological research found that the craft of Chu Dau pottery was a center of refined ceramics that commenced around the end of the 14th century.

The craft reached the pinnacle of its popularity in the 15th and 16th centuries and started to lose favor a century later.

Two of antique items are found in a sunken ship off Cu Lao Cham.

Quang Nam finds thousands of ceramics -

Another 5,875 ancient pottery items have been salvaged from an old shipwreck off Cham island, Quang Nam province’s Department of Culture and Information said.

The items are renowned Chu Dau ceramics dating back to the 15th and 16th centuries, and include bowls, cups, dishes, pots, and vases.

The central province has undertaken several missions and salvaged thousands of Chu Dau ceramics items since 1998.
 

By Staten Island Advance

Could there be a fortune lurking beneath the Arthur Kill ?

In 1903 a barge listed in the channel while carrying nearly 8,000 silver bars belonging to the Guggenheim family.

The precious cargo spilled over the side. Most of the bars were recovered, but it is believed about 1,400 of them -- worth $6,000 to $7,000 each -- are still scattered on the bottom of the busy shipping channel.

Now, Aqua Survey, a Hunterdon County-N.J. company that specializes in environmental research, is on the hunt for the remaining bars, according to a Star Ledger report.

Since the spring of 2006, it has used advanced technology to map the waters, and it believes it is close to a find. It even has petitioned a federal judge for scavenger rights.

A shipwreck from the imperial Roman era, found off Cyprus, could lead to the discovery of vessels sunk in antiquity's largest naval engagement, the Battle of Salamis in 306 BC, said an official statement on Thursday.

"According to (historian) Diodoros, it was somewhere in the area where in 306 BC the Macedonian (King) Demetrius Poliorketes triumphed over Ptolemy of Egypt in one of the largest naval battles of antiquity," said Cyprus' Antiquities Department.

More than 300 ships were believed to have been engaged in the battle that saw Demetrius capture Cyprus.

The Roman ship, dating from the first century AD, was discovered sunk off Cape Greco on the Mediterranean's southeast coast during an underwater survey to determine the area's long-term maritime history.

Material found provided solid evidence of maritime traffic from the archaic or classic period.

The discovery had encouraged international archaeologists working in deeper waters offshore, and more extensive mapping of the wreck and the seabed is planned for next summer.

From CNN Money


RMS Titanic, Inc., a wholly owned subsidiary of Premier Exhibitions, Inc. , today announced that it will conduct its first research and recovery expedition at the wreck site of the RMS Carpathia.

Departing from Brest, France on August 16, 2007, the expedition team will oversee the archaeological recovery of artifacts from the Carpathia along with site documentation and assessment of the overall structural integrity of the historic ship.

RMS Carpathia was built in 1902 for the oceanic passenger trade, and provided service primarily between New York City, Queenstown and Liverpool, and between New York City and ports of the Mediterranean.

On April 15, 1912, the Carpathia became the most famous rescue ship in the world. After receiving a distress signal from the Titanic, Carpathia's Captain Rostron quickly responded and rescued 705 passengers from the North Atlantic.

Six years later on July 17, 1918, Carpathia was torpedoed by a German U-Boat and sank while transporting military passengers for the British government during World War I.

Carpathia was re-discovered in 2000 by a team of shipwreck explorers funded by author Clive Cussler of the United States.

By Emily Ford

Darren Morgan, a salvage expert, tells what it’s like recovering high-value cargo from sunken freighters Celia was already 1,200 metres under water by the time Darren Morgan reached her.

“It took 18 months of planning and preparation,” he says. But the lengthy courtship paid dividends – the salvage generated sales worth more than £1.75 million for the company.

Celia, the codename given to this particular shipwreck, sank off northwest Spain in the 1970s.

Morgan, head of salvage at SubSea Resources, coordinated the cargo recovery operation with a small team, retrieving about 550 tonnes of copper and zinc.

“It is not treasure hunting,” he says. “These are commodity metals.”

Before separating a shipwreck from its ghostly secrets, the firm first has to find it. Researchers identify possible freighter vessels lost at sea which must meet strict criteria.

“Wrecks must be located in international waters and war graves are strictly off limits.”

Permission must also be sought from the underwriters, who are the legal owners of the cargo. Navigators study the last sightings of the ship to pinpoint its location to within 100 nautical square miles.

“We look at where survivors were picked up... what the currents were like,” he says. A target being considered for 2008-09 was sunk during the Second World War. “We have the log from the U-boat commander.”

From Associated Press

Salvagers discovered thousands of pearls Friday in a small, lead box they said they found while searching for the wreckage of the 17th-century Spanish galleon Santa Margarita.

Divers from Blue Water Ventures of Key West said they found the sealed box, measuring 3.5 inches by 5.5 inches, along with a gold bar, eight gold chains and hundreds of other artifacts earlier this week.

They were apparently buried beneath the ocean floor in approximately 18 feet of water about 40 miles west of Key West.