Page 156 - Manual for Activities directed at the Underwater Cultural Heritage

 © Archivo del Centre d’Arqueologia Subaquàtica de Catalunya.The Wreck Sorres
X (14th century) sunk in the Canal de Remo Olímpico de Castelldefels, Barcelona, Spain. This is a rare case of a ship with two types of rudders: an axial rudder (stern rudder) and a lateral rudder(side rudder a.k.a. quarter rudder). It was discovered during the construction works
of the Olympic channel of Castelldefels in 1990. After preparatory work, it was excavated between 1990 and 1991 under the direction of A. Martín.The project report was published in 1992.
The efficient and timely completion of this project
from preparatory work to publication was achieved through rigorous planning and accurate implementation of the project design.
servation or preventive conservation includes a number of tasks, such as cleaning, desalination, consolidation and packing. A timetable could be created in order to prioritise the treatment process of the excavated objects according to their material and condition, given the time and resources available.
Project length
Archaeological projects vary in their nature, scope, methodology and budget, resulting in great variation of duration. Some basic surveys could last only for a few days, whilst some excavation projects can take decades to complete. However, the scale and complexity of many archaeological sites may prevent the undertaking of a full excavation, especially when advances in research and analysis techniques can turn the study of one quite small site into a lifetime of work. In view of this, it is wise to break up lifetime ambitions into smaller, manageable and easy-to-schedule projects. The nature of the project, objectives and its allocated budget will often de- termine the method or combination of methods that can be used in the various phases of the project.
Accordingly, when setting a timetable for a project, it is essential to keep the following in mind:
• What do we want to achieve during the project as a whole (long-term) and during intermediate stages (short and middle term)?
• What resources do we have or are we expecting to have for the project (funding, facilities, equipment, expertise, etc.)?
• How much time could be dedicated to each phase of the project (fieldwork, assessment, analysis, dissemination and curation)?
Due to many variables, the length of time that a project will take can be difficult to estimate. Nevertheless, some aspects of a project are easier to estimate, and it is less difficult to establish a timetable for them than for others.
155
6
Project duration – timetable