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From The Hindu

Marine archaeologists have found a stone anchor in the Gulf of Khambhat with a design similar to the ones used by Chinese and Japanese ships in the 12th-14th century AD, giving the first offshore evidence indicating India's trade relations with the two Asian countries.

This stone anchor was found during an exploration headed by two marine archaeologists -- A S Gaur and B K Bhatt -- from the National Institute of Oceanography (NIO), Goa, in the later half of 2008.

"Though there are a lot of references and Chinese pottery (found from coastal sites) indicating trade relations between the two Asian nations (China and Japan) in the past, but this anchor from the offshore region is the first evidence from Indian waters.

Similar type of anchors have been found from Chinese and Japanese waters," Mr.Gaur told PTI.

Both Gaur and Mr. Bhatt have described the findings of their exploration in a paper 'Marine Archaeological Exploration on the Western Coast, Gulf of Khambhat' posted on NIO's website.

The exploration was conducted on the east coast of Saurashtra along the coastal areas of Bhavnagar district namely Gogha, Hatab, Gopnath and Vallabhipur.

"One of the anchors found at Hathab (in Bhavnagar) made of laterite has been discovered for the first time from Indian waters.

It has a shallow and wide groove on all four faces of the block," the duo have stated in their paper.

More to read...

By Richard Charan

James Jagroop spent five hours casting his line into the waters off the Mosquito Creek, La Romaine, hoping to hook a big one for a fish broth to go with the rum lime.

He snared not one fish. But took home the catch of a lifetime-a sword, still in its wooden scabbard, encrusted in barnacles hiding the secret of its maker.

The Chaguaramas Military History and AeroSpace Museum investigated the the origin of the treasure. But just as mysterious is how the sword came to rest on the shallow seabed not 50 feet from the coastal road at the creek.

One suggestion is that the sword may have been part of a deep sea shipwreck, but was snared by a net dragged by a trawler and deposited closer to shore, where shrimping boats also trawling waters brought it to within reach of Jagroop's hook.

That the sword ended up being caught is also an apparent one-in-a-million chance event. But all Jagroop, a building contractor from Princes Town, wants to know, is how much his treasure is worth.

From abc27 News

In a municipal garage owned by the City of Harrisburg is a pile of lumber that is the remains of the Royal Savage, the flagship of the most-famous traitor in American history, Benedict Arnold.

The Royal Savage was sunk in battle in 1776, salvaged in 1934, and purchased in 1995 by Mayor Stephen Reed for $42,500. The ship was supposed to be displayed in the National Civil War Museum.

Reed said the Revolutionary War ship would have been part of a special exhibit.

In 2001, the city of Plattsburgh, New York claimed the Royal Savage as its property. Randy King, the mayor's spokesman at the time, said Reed didn't like that idea because Plattsburgh didn't have a facility where the boat could be properly stored.

By Brian Hicks

The boat is trolling not too far off the Battery, dragging what is basically a missile-shaped metal detector, when the onboard computer picks up a little blip. Something's down there.

It could be an abandoned crab trap, a long-lost anchor — or the remains of frame torpedoes set up by Confederate troops nearly 150 years ago, when this city was under siege.

James Spirek, the deputy state underwater archaeologist, means to find out which it is. He's leading an expedition by the South Carolina Institute for Archaeology and Anthropology to map one of the largest and most important battlefields in the country: Charleston Harbor.

It's being funded by a $28,000 National Park Service grant.

Even after all these years, there still are remnants of the 19th century sunk in the harbor, buried under the beach at Sullivan's Island, hidden beneath the marsh surrounding James Island.

From The Local

A pair of stone-age boats, thought to be the oldest in , have been allowed to rot in a partially collapsed shed while the northern German regional archaeology authorities stood by broke and helpless, it emerged this week.

The two 7,000-year-old wooden boats and a third one thought to be around 6,000 years old, were hailed as a sensation when they were found during construction work on the Baltic coast near Stralsund in Mecklenburg-Vorpommern seven years ago.

But now they are effectively ruined, after a lack of funds resulted in them being stored inappropriately. “It is a loss for Germany if not for the whole world,” said Andreas Grüger, director of the Stralsund historical museum.

Read more...

From Engineer Live

A Saab Seaeye Falcon ROV has been used to investigate the wreck of a Roman ship outside the Spanish harbour of Cartagena.

The wreck is believed to be 2,200 years old. Its cargo included thousands of amphora of wine. The clay jars were still carefully packed in the hold.

The discovery was made by explorers working for the Aurora Trust, a not-for-profit oceanographic exploration, education and archaeological organisation based in Malta. 

Working with the National Centre for Underwater Archaeology of Spain, the Aurora Trust has created a map of the submerged cultural heritage on the seabed outside the harbour, and have set about targeting various items of interest.

Read more...

From Odyssey Marine Exploration

Odyssey Marine Exploration (Nasdaq:OMEX - News), pioneers in the field of deep-ocean shipwreck exploration, today reported full year 2008 financial results.

For the full year 2008, Odyssey reported revenues of $4.1 million, compared to $6.1 million in 2007. The Company reported a net loss of $24.8 million for the full year 2008, compared to a net loss of $23.8 million in 2007. The net loss per share for the full year 2008 was $0.50, compared to a net loss per share of $0.54 in 2007.

Operating expenses decreased $0.8 million from $29.9 million in 2007 to $29.1 million in 2008. While operations and research expenses increased $4.3 million from $14.3 million in 2007 to $18.6 million in 2008, marketing, general and administrative expenses decreased $3.5 million from $13.3 million to $9.8 million. In addition, the cost of sales was $1.7 million lower in 2008 than in 2007.

Odyssey attributed the 2008 increase in operations and research expense to several factors, including increased vessel operating expenses ($2.8 million) related to additional ship charters utilized to supplement our operating schedule in the “Atlas” search area while the Ocean Alert was undergoing repairs, as well as vessel repair and maintenance expenses ($2.1 million), offset by lower themed attraction expenses ($0.6 million).

From Pee Dee

A team of underwater archaeologists from the University of South Carolina will begin work to locate and raise three Confederate cannons – each weighing upwards of 5 tons – from the silty sediment at the bottom of Mars Bluff on the Pee Dee River.

Led by state underwater archaeologist Dr. Christopher Amer, researchers from the university’s S.C. Institute for Archaeology and Anthropology will use remote sensing technology, including a magnetometer that identifies the presence of iron, to survey the Confederate Mars Bluff Navy Yard on the Pee Dee River and locate the the four and one half, five and seven and one-half -ton cannons.

The Navy Yard is on the east side of the river in Marion County.

The survey is set to begin April 30, with location of the cannons and excavation of the Naval Yard taking place in late May to mid-June.

Once located and verified, the cannons, also called gun tubes, will be raised as early as this fall.

The project is funded in part by a $200,000 grant from the Drs. Bruce and Lee Foundation in Florence.

The Mars Bluff Naval Yard was one of seven Confederate naval yards that were located inland so gunboats and support vessels for the war could be built and protected from Union forces.

Mars Bluff was chosen for its inland location, proximity to the railroad, water communication with Charleston via Georgetown and the abundance of ash, oak and pine lumber.