Page 26 - Green - Maritime Archaeology: A Technical Handbook. 2nd ed

Chapter 1: Introduction to Maritime Archaeology 5
almost like a tomb on land (naturally some things tend to disappear). The artifacts, however, are usually simple domestic wares belonging to the common seaman, trade goods destined for the markets of the world, and the fittings of the vessel itself. As a result the collections provide new and different types of information through which we can study the past. The consequent disintegration of the site and the natural effects of the sea are thus the primary vectors that the archaeologist have to interpret.
The advent of underwater breathing equipment and early salvage work starting essentially in the 16th century had a minor effect on the archaeo- logical record, but the advent of the aqualung had a major impact on under- water sites. More and more sites are being looted by treasure hunters so that the archaeological record, like that on land, is now slowly disappear- ing. These issues have been of concern to archaeologists and legislators, and there has been a long and bitter battle with the treasure-hunting commu- nity over this issue. The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) Convention on the Protection of the Underwa- ter Cultural Heritage was adopted in November 2001 by the Plenary session of the 31st General Conference thus becoming UNESCO’s fourth heritage convention. This convention is a starting point in dealing with issues relat- ing to sites that lie in international waters, but it also requires that coun- tries abide by its principles. The conference underlines an international desire that underwater cultural heritage should be protected.
Underwater archaeology as a discipline had its beginnings in the 19th century when salvors, working on the then modern shipwrecks, and sponge divers seeking sponges occasionally came across ancient material. This attracted archaeological interest, however, the work that was undertaken was limited at best to an archaeologist directing divers from the surface (Frost, 1965; Taylor, 1965; Throckmorton, 1964). The advent of scuba equip- ment and the birth of sport diving rapidly altered this situation. The 1950s marked the start of two separate developments that were to affect the future of maritime archaeology: the diving archaeologist and, for want of a better word, the “looter”. The former included a small number of archae- ologists who learned to dive, and a large number of divers who became involved and interested in doing archaeology under water, many of whom (like myself) went on to become archaeologists. The looters were sports divers, who, in the Mediterranean, found that Greek and Roman amphora commanded high prices on the antiquities market. Even if there was no commercial motive, these artifacts from the sea made excellent souvenirs. In the United States, the seeds of a far greater problem were being sown. The discovery of the shipwrecks of the Spanish fleets that sailed from Central America to Spain, bringing the treasures of the Americas, attracted the growing interest of underwater treasure hunters. The treasure hunter