Miscellaneous
knife, the most tangible clue to the
identity of New Jersey's mystery U-boat.
In 1991, while checking out an obscure site known for hanging up fishing lines, I dropped down the anchor line only to find a virgin German U-boat. A wreck diver's fantasy of discovering a new shipwreck somehow had become a reality, and it was every bit as good as could be imagined. While reveling in the experience, I wondered if I would have enough skill and luck to ever make it happen again. Several discoveries later, the challenge is still irresistible.
More: Searching For Shipwrecks ...
I find this sort of material to be much more interesting than the endless rehashing of coral reefs, glowingly useless gear reviews, and "buoyancy tips" that fill up the standard glossy diving magazines.
Historical
Conservation Manual – Donny L. Hamilton
The Oxford Companion to Ships and the Sea
Peter Kemp, 1988
Lots of interesting information and trivia.
More: Artifacts References ...
Finding a Shipwreck
by Capt. Steve Nagiewicz
Of course, finding a shipwreck is a necessary prerequisite for finding artifacts. Many wreck locations are well known. Others are secrets, and many wrecks have yet to be discovered. While you can recover artifacts from almost any shipwreck, it is these "virgin" wrecks that are often the best producers of prize items like portholes, deadeyes, and china. But how do you find a wreck like this? Research is the most productive method. This will require visiting local libraries, historical societies, nautical museums, and many other institutions. It means lots of reading and digging for information. Be prepared to spend some time searching for clues that aren't willing to be found.
More: All About Artifacts ...
New Jersey scuba divers provide evidence of the identity of a popular New Jersey dive site
More: Identifying The Emerald ...
LOST AT SEA:
A treatise on the management and ownership
of shipwrecks and shipwreck artifacts
by Michael C. Barnette
Somewhere out on the ocean, a ship is in distress. Tossed about by churning seas and brutal winds, the vessel struggles to stay afloat. Her crew puts forth a valiant effort while passengers, many incapacitated by waves of nausea spawned by the ever-moving deck underneath their feet, huddle together in fear. The hull is slowly breached, and seawater steadily invades the ship. As the blitzkrieg of flooding water rises to extinguish the boiler fires, the vessel loses all power. Cast in darkness and overwhelmed by the noise of the howling wind and crashing surf, the sea tears off sections of the crippled ship, carrying away numerous unfortunate souls. The end is near.
More: Maritime Salvage Law ...
Artifacts recovered after long immersion in salt or freshwater require conservation treatment if they are to last. On exposure to high concentrations of oxygen in the air, iron artifacts will bloom into piles of rust. Wood will crack and split if dried out improperly. Organic materials will crumble to dust.
The manual below details conservation methods for many types of materials and artifacts.
More: Conservation of Artifacts ...
