Page 37 - Manual for Activities directed at the Underwater Cultural Heritage

of archives and collections. It should be added that in view of authenticity and context, it is preferable that the institution where the archive of finds and information is to be kept should be as close to the archaeological site of origin as practicable. As a matter of course, it should be under the same political control as the site itself.
Counting the benefits
In banning the commercial exploitation of underwater cultural heritage for trade or speculation, Rule 2 defines what is meant
by the term commercial exploitation in the
context of the Convention. It fully accepts
that management can be organized in commercial terms. This applies to ‘the
provision of professional archaeological
services or necessary services incidental thereto’ and by extension it also applies to visitor centres, museums and museum shops. Neither the Convention nor the Annex aim to prevent economic benefits of the heritage accruing from visitors and sustainable tourism from being realized and shared in an area or among a community. Certainly these arrangements need to be in their nature and purpose in full conformity with the Convention and the authorization of the competent authorities must be obtained. Examples of compatible exploitation of underwater cultural heritage are commercial arrangements that organize access to and supervision of heritage sites, either by dive operators or visitor centres, or entrance fees to museums exhibiting underwater cultural heritage.
While Rule 2 does not explicitly mention such arrangements for access that are compatible with a site’s protection and management, this interpretation is fully supported by other rulings of the Convention. As will be discussed below in relationship to Rule 7 and Rule 8, sharing of knowledge, appreciation and access are important ethical principles.
 © Underwater Archaeological Division of Thailand. Confiscated ceramics that have been illegally retrieved from an Asian wreck in Thailand waters.
As early as the Han dynasty,
a lucrative maritime trade developed in south Asia.The numerous exchanges of spices, aromatics and exotic products, silk, ceramics, etc. were a source of wealth but also the cause of a great number of human tragedies, caused by storms, piracy or treacherous reefs. Over more than 2,000 years of maritime trade, the ocean floor of the South China Sea has become
the graveyard of numerous shipwrecks.
In view of the high commercial values, numerous salvage operations both legal and illegal were made to recover the
ar tefacts.
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General Principles