scholarly journals Underwater Power Tools for In Situ Preservation, Cleaning and Consolidation of Submerged Archaeological Remains

2021 ◽  
Vol 9 (6) ◽  
pp. 676
Author(s):  
Emiliano Scalercio ◽  
Francesco Sangiovanni ◽  
Alessandro Gallo ◽  
Loris Barbieri
Keyword(s):  
Scientific Community ◽  
Future Generations ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Underwater Cultural Heritage ◽  
Correct Interpretation ◽  
Archaeological Remains ◽  
True Value ◽  
In Situ Preservation ◽  
Power Tools

In situ protection and conservation of the Underwater Cultural Heritage are now considered a primary choice by the scientific community to be preferred, when possible, over the practice of recovery. The conservation of the artefacts within their environmental context is essential in fact for a correct interpretation of archaeological presences and to preserve their true value intact for future generations. However, this is not an easy task because modern technological equipment is necessary to make the work carried out by underwater restorers and archaeologists faster and more efficient. To this end, the paper presents three innovative underwater power tools for the cleaning, conservation, and consolidation activities to be performed in submerged archaeological sites. The first one is an underwater cleaning brush tool for a soft cleaning of the underwater archaeological structures and artefacts; the second one is a multifunctional underwater hammer drill suitable to be used as a corer sampler, chisel, or drill; the last one is an injection tool specifically designed to dispense mortar underwater for consolidation techniques of submerged structures.

scholarly journals Development of Predictive Geoarchaeological Models to Locate and Assess the Preservation Potential of Submerged Prehistoric Sites Using Remote Sensing, Palaeoenvironmental Analysis, and GIS

Heritage ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 4 (4) ◽  
pp. 4678-4701
Author(s):  
David John Gregory ◽  
Ole Bennike ◽  
Jørn Bo Jensen ◽  
Peter Rasmussen ◽  
Zyad Al-Hamdani
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Sea Level ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Underwater Cultural Heritage ◽  
Sea Level Changes ◽  
Natural Processes ◽  
In Situ Preservation ◽  
Preservation Potential ◽  
Great Belt

Using the Mesolithic site of Tudse Hage in the Great Belt of Denmark, this paper proposes a generic stepwise process to create geoarchaeological models that output seamless morphology maps in a GIS. This was achieved using remote sensing databases and the collection of marine geophysical data, above and below the seabed. On the basis of these data, key areas, with sediment sequences representative of the postglacial transgression surfaces, were identified. Core samples were taken for palaeoenvironmental analysis and dating that enabled a reconstruction of the relative sea-level changes. Using this information, palaeogeographic coastline maps of the Kongemose, late Kongemose, Ertebølle, and Neolithic periods in the Tudse Hage area were prepared, and potential hotspots for archaeological sites were proposed. Since their inundation, submerged prehistoric archaeological sites have been, and are, dynamic, with anthropogenic and natural processes affecting their stability and preservation. With the advocation of in situ preservation as a means of managing underwater cultural heritage, predicting where sites have survived these processes, and where they can be found, in advance of subsea development or other anthropogenic exploitation, is essential. Future natural threats to sites preserved in situ were determined through the modelling of seabed currents and sediment erosion.

scholarly journals Lessons from Star Carr on the vulnerability of organic archaeological remains to environmental change

2016 ◽  
Vol 113 (46) ◽  
pp. 12957-12962 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kirsty High ◽  
Nicky Milner ◽  
Ian Panter ◽  
Beatrice Demarchi ◽  
Kirsty E. H. Penkman
Keyword(s):  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Archaeological Remains ◽  
Rapid Loss ◽  
Human Environment ◽  
Archaeological Material ◽  
Exceptional Preservation ◽  
Environmental Materials ◽  
The Last Glacial ◽  
Organic Remains

Examples of wetland deposits can be found across the globe and are known for preserving organic archaeological and environmental remains that are vitally important to our understanding of past human–environment interactions. The Mesolithic site of Star Carr (Yorkshire, United Kingdom) represents one of the most influential archives of human response to the changing climate at the end of the last glacial in Northern Europe. A hallmark of the site since its discovery in 1948 has been the exceptional preservation of its organic remains. Disturbingly, recent excavations have suggested that the geochemistry of the site is no longer conducive to such remarkable survival of organic archaeological and environmental materials. Microcosm (laboratory-based) burial experiments have been undertaken, alongside analysis of artifacts excavated from the site, to assess the effect of these geochemical changes on the remaining archaeological material. By applying a suite of macroscopic and molecular analyses, we demonstrate that the geochemical changes at Star Carr are contributing to the inexorable and rapid loss of valuable archaeological and paleoenvironmental information. Our findings have global implications for other wetland sites, particularly archaeological sites preserved in situ.

scholarly journals Up Close and Personal: Feeling the Past at Urban Archaeological Sites

2016 ◽  
Vol 23 ◽  
pp. 43-55 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tracy Ireland
Keyword(s):  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Colonial History ◽  
Archaeological Remains ◽  
Complex Matrix ◽  
Social Emotional ◽  
The Past ◽  
History Of ◽  
Personal Feeling ◽  
The City

In this article I focus on the emotional, sensory and aesthetic affordances of urban archaeological remains conserved in situ and explore what these ruins ‘do’ in the context of the layered urban fabric of the city. I am concerned with a particular category of archaeological remains: those that illustrate the colonial history of settler nations, exploring examples in Sydney and Montreal. Using Sara Ahmed’s concept of ‘affective economies’ – where emotions work to stick things together and align individuals with communities – I tease out some of the distinctive aspects of this particular form of social/emotional/material entanglement, that appears to create stable objects of memory and identity from a much more contingent and complex matrix of politics, social structures, and the more-than-human materiality of the city. I argue that an understanding of the affective qualities of ruins and archaeological traces, and of how people feel heritage and the past through aesthetic and sensuous experiences of materiality, authenticity, locality and identity, bring us closer to understanding how heritage works. 

The CoMAS Project: New Materials and Tools for Improving the In situ Documentation, Restoration, and Conservation of Underwater Archaeological Remains

2016 ◽  
Vol 50 (4) ◽  
pp. 108-118 ◽  
Author(s):  
Fabio Bruno ◽  
Maurizio Muzzupappa ◽  
Loris Barbieri ◽  
Alessandro Gallo ◽  
Gerardo Ritacco ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Underwater Cultural Heritage ◽  
Ministry Of Education ◽  
Archaeological Remains ◽  
New Materials ◽  
Remotely Operated Vehicle ◽  
Unesco Convention ◽  
Innovative Materials ◽  
Cooperation System

AbstractOn November 2, 2001, the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage provided a detailed state cooperation system and set out the basic principles for the protection of underwater cultural heritage. To date, the Convention has been ratified by 51 countries. One of the four main principles states that the In situ preservation of underwater cultural heritage should be considered as the first option before allowing or engaging in any further activities. In accordance with these principles and recommendations, in the last years many projects intended for developing and testing new techniques and tools to support In situ conservation of underwater archaeological remains have been funded and are now underway.This paper describes the contribution of the CoMAS project (In situ conservation planning of Underwater Archaeological Artifacts—<ext-link ext-link-type="uri" href="http://www.comasproject.eu">http://www.comasproject.eu</ext-link>), funded by the Italian Ministry of Education, Universities and Research (MIUR) and run by a partnership of private companies and public research centers. The CoMAS project aims at the development of new materials, techniques, and tools for the documentation, conservation, and restoration of underwater archaeological sites in their natural environment. The paper describes in detail the results achieved during the project in the development of innovative materials, mechatronic tools, and armed remotely operated vehicle systems that can efficiently support the restorers' work in all their activities for preserving underwater cultural heritage in its original location on the seafloor.

scholarly journals Underwater Cultural Heritage and Maritime Archaeology in Croatia: An Overview

2012 ◽  
Vol 15 (2) ◽  
pp. 285-308 ◽  
Author(s):  
Irena Radić Rossi
Keyword(s):  
Cultural Heritage ◽  
Maritime Archaeology ◽  
Classical Antiquity ◽  
Archaeological Sites ◽  
Systematic Research ◽  
Underwater Cultural Heritage ◽  
Adriatic Coast ◽  
Modern Era ◽  
Maritime Environment

Archaeological sites in Croatia's shallow waters are mentioned in written sources from the sixteenth century, and since the eighteenth century they have been used as evidence for the sinking of the Eastern Adriatic coast. It was at the end of the same century that the first Roman shipwreck in Croatian waters was reported. Sponge divers and coral hunters raised archaeological finds from the seabed off the Croatian coast, thus contributing to the creation of many private and monastic collections. Isolated campaigns aimed at protecting underwater cultural heritage began in the 1950s, and by 1970 these efforts became part of a well-organized system. Although the lack of systematic research remains notable, a number of surveys and rescue excavations have enriched our knowledge of ancient seafaring along the Croatian coast and have contributed to the study of the maritime environment. Some well-preserved shipwrecks from classical antiquity and the modern era show excellent potential for thein situprotection and presentation of Croatian underwater cultural heritage.

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