Maritime Archaeologists vs Treasure Hunters

Now this is a subject that makes the blood run hot in the veins of archaeologists. First of all, let us establish the difference.

As an archaeologist I am interested in uncovering forgotten stories from the past. Although it may not necessarily be of monetary value, knowledge is the most valuable thing we can get from any archaeological site. Valuable artefacts are of secondary nature, although it is undeniably nice to find a piece of jewellery once in a while, but REPEATING; this is not the main purpose of archaeology.

Disaster flood strikes! Graphic image from the movie '2012'. Source

Most people have probably watched the movie '2012' about a disaster flood striking the Earth and threatens to wipe out all life on the planet. Well at the end of the movie [SPOILER ALERT], the first thing the survivors do after establishing their own safety is to start searching for what is left. A lot of people have died and with them the knowledge of many things was lost - to recover this knowledge is now the aim of the survivors. So what is not this if not archaeology! True, it is from a very different perspective compared to what we are normally used to, but nonetheless it is archaeology.

Now in perspective, a treasure hunter is only interested in recovering artefacts of monetary value. That person does not care about what we can learn from the site and sees that as the secondary purpose of the project. Unfortunately a lot of history and knowledge is lost because of this, and all those underwater graves are disturbed and treated with no respect.

Maybe not quite how it works... Source

The United Nations estimates that about 3 million shipwrecks lay scattered across the world's oceans (Source). Although this is a huge number, it is not very likely that you will come across a treasure shipwreck during your lifetime. So despite what has been said, treasure hunting does not bring in the millions into your bank account. In fact, it is likely to just do the opposite. Two divers have pleaded guilty of looting artefacts from shipwrecks, with the total value being £250 000. They now face to be heavily fined and receive a prison sentence of up to 8 years. Their case will appear in court again on the 2nd July.

Now here is a question; why does illegal looting of shipwrecks keep occurring on a regular basis? Is it because people tend to ignore the laws or that they are ignorant of them? Best way of counteracting this is through education! The domestic and international maritime laws need to be made available and visible to everyone. They should also be included in the schools' curriculum, as the earlier people are made aware the better. Although I have studied archaeology for four years now, it was not until this year (2014) that I properly learnt about the laws concerning maritime archaeological sites! If I am not made aware of this before now, then certainly we can't expect the public to be aware of it either.

The UNESCO 2001 Convention protects the World's underwater heritage. Source

So what should you do if you happen to come across a shipwreck. If the wreck lies in UK territorial waters (the law states differently depending on which country the wreck is located in) then you have 28 days to report it to the Receiver of Wreck. Failure to do so will be seen as an offence and you can face a fine for breaking the law. You are also not allowed to touch it until the site has been properly investigated - so no illegal looting! After reporting the site it doesn't mean that you aren't allowed to be part of the project any more. Professional Maritime Archaeologists welcome volunteers as this will speed up the project and also spread the knowledge of how to excavate and treat underwater sites - so make sure you keep an eye on what they are planning! You can of course claim the credit for discovering the site as well.

I could go on ranting about this subject, but I shall save it for a later post. It is a shame that there is some disagreement between maritime archaeologists and treasure hunters, as a mutual partnership could turn out to be very valuable indeed.

L