Monitoring, Safeguarding and Visualizing North-European Shipwreck Sites: Common European Cultural Heritage - Challenges for Cultural Resource Management S Newsletter2/2004 MMMOS MMMarch 2004 A shipwreck research project funded by the European Union Culture 2000 Programme contents Newsletter 2002:I Sallamaria Tikkanen, Riikka Alvik: Theme: Introduction What is MoSS? 1 December 2002 Newsletter 2003:I P. Palma & D. Gregory: Introduction Theme: Vrouw Maria 3 May 2003 Paola Palma: Who’s who Newsletter 2003:II 3 Theme: The Darss Cog June 2003 David Gregory: Degradation of wooden shipwrecks: threats 4 Newsletter 2003:III Theme: The Eric Nordevall October 2003 Paola Palma: Aims and goals 5 Newsletter 2003:IV Theme: The Burgzand Noord 10 Paola Palma: Methods and Logistics December 2003 6 Newsletter 2004:I David Gregory: Data loggers Theme: The Visualization Theme 8 January 2004 Paola Palma: Analyses Newsletter 2004:II 9 Theme: The Monitoring Theme March 2004 Newsletter 2004:III Theme: The Safeguarding Theme May 2004 Theme: Monitoring S Sallamaria Tikkanen, Riikka Alvik MMMOS What is MoSS? he MoSS project is not only to the general public but also For more information, please contact Ms based on four ship- to the experts in the area of pro- Riikka Alvik (Mrs. Tikkanen is on maternity wrecks, all of which are tecting the cultural heritage. The aim leave), MoSS Project Leader, The Maritime of great significance is to awaken European peoples’ Museum of Finland. Tel. +358 9 4050 9057 from a European point interest to our common underwater Fax + 358 9 4050 9060 of view and show a cultural heritage and to have the Email. [email protected] diversity of intercultural general public participate in T Web site: http://www.mossproject.com relationships throughout a long period protecting the heritage. The wrecks of history. The wrecks are located in of the project – ships that sailed on Netherlands, Germany, Sweden, and European waters – act as examples Finland, and they represent different of maritime history as they tell us vessel types. The oldest of the wrecks about the many local and inter- is dated to the 13th century whereas national dimensions of the European the youngest is from the middle of the culture. 19th century. The wrecks are in different kinds of underwater environ- The MoSS project is organized by ments; in sea, lake, and brackish The Maritime Museum of Finland (co- waters, and the conditions on the ordinator), The Mary Rose Arch- sites are both stable and unstable. aeological Services Ltd. (United The wrecks have preserved extremely Kingdom), The National Service for well; two of them are almost intact. Archaeological Heritage: Netherlands Institute for Ship- and Underwater The MoSS project has three main Archaeology ROB/NISA (the themes: monitoring, safeguarding and Netherlands), The National Museum visualizing shipwrecks. The first theme of Denmark/Centre for Maritime includes monitoring the condition of Archaeology (Denmark), The the wrecks, or in other words doing Department for Preservation of research on the degradation of Archaeological Sites and Monuments shipwrecks under water. / Archaeological State Museum of Mecklenburg-Vorpommern The aim of this theme is to develop (Germany), and Södertörns högskola and improve the methods used in – University College (Sweden). monitoring the physical and environ- mental conditions of shipwrecks. The The MoSS Project is the first inter- second theme is safeguarding, which national shipwreck project that aims at outlining and developing European Community Culture 2000 models to protect shipwrecks so that Programme funds. The European also the needs of different public Community Culture 2000 Program- groups are taken into account. The me is a programme that supports third theme is visualizing. The four international cultural co-operation shipwreck sites will be made physi- projects that involve organizers from cally visible using underwater and several countries. The objectives are other images. The project will be among other things to encourage co- advertised multilingually to the operation, to promote the common European public. European cultural heritage, and to disseminate the knowledge of the The MoSS project consists of field- history and culture of the peoples of work, Internet site, publications, Europe. In 2001, it was the first time posters, leaflets, reports, articles, projects on sub-aquatic archaeology meetings, and seminars. One of the were especially called to take part in 2 objectives is to produce information the program. Paola Palma P. Palma & Introduction D. Gregory With the ever-increasing discoveries of vention on the Protection of the such as whether they are buried or shipwreck finds and other submerged Underwater Cultural Heritage*, which exposed, what is the chemistry and structures, there is a growing need to states, “The protection of underwater biology of the site, as well as the develop alternative methods of cultural heritage through in situ pre- geomorphological, geophysical and storage and stabilisation of these servation shall be considered as the ecological conditions they are ex- archaeological finds. This problem is first option”. posed to. threefold: first, the initial storage and Archaeological investigation can be In more general terms, an underwater conservation is costly; second, re- a non-intrusive process, especially archaeological structure is consider- sources may not be available to when it involves the study of marine ed relatively stable and at equilibrium provide full conservation; third, it may environmental factors that act on site. with its surroundings, after centuries not always be desirable, or necessary, The scientific study of the environ- of non-disturbance. When these to excavate a submerged site, yet as mental conditions that underwater factors change, either because the part of the cultural resource it should archaeological remains are subjected natural conditions of the site change be stabilised and managed in situ. to, is fundamental for the investigation or because of human interference, the Also it should not be forgotten that and interpretation of the site itself. It equilibrium is altered, affecting the excavation is a destructive process also provides essential information for condition of the archaeological and therefore should be chosen as a more effective preservation methods remains. The scientific study of the solution only when the right infrastruct- to be applied in situ or for conser- environmental and ecological ures exist and/or the archaeological vation of the artefacts in a situation conditions of a site, enables the and technological lessons to be learnt where a structure is exposed. Or- identification of actual and potential are rather unique. ganic and inorganic archaeological threats to the archaeological heritage This desire for in situ preservation has material in the pelagic and benthic as well as the development of been politically galvanised in Rule 1 environments are subject to different appropriate monitoring methods, of the Annex of the UNESCO Con- levels of threat, depending on factors suitable to the particular site and its environment. * http://www.unesco.org/culture/laws/underwater/html_eng/convention.shtml Who’s who? ary Rose Archaeo- manston Log Boats, logical Services Ltd all of which are two (MRAS) is the orga- thousand years old. nisation responsible In 1999 MRAS com- for the Monitoring pleted the conser- aspect of the MoSS vation of the Dover project. Bronze Age Boat, MMRAS was started in 1996, with the which is one of the objective to make available to the oldest ships on dis- archaeological community, the wealth play in the UK. of experience acquired by the Mary The Mary Rose Trust Rose Trust over the last twenty-five is the lead museum years. MRAS is a wholly owned for Maritime Arch- subsidiary of the Mary Rose Trust aeology and Con- [MRT] and all profits are transferred servation in the UK. Mary Rose Museum (Mary Rose Trust) to the MRT to contribute to the Paola Palma, Dr Mark Jones and David Gregory from the National considerable cost of conserving the Charles Barker from MRAS are Museum of Denmark is acting as a Mary Rose. actively involved in running and consultant for this phase, having a At present MRAS is involved in managing the Monitoring phase of the wide experience in deterioration of conservation the Guernsey Romano- MoSS Project from a financial and archaeological material in the marine Celtic ship, the Fiskerton and Gor- scientific point of view. environment. 3 S David Gregory MMMOS Degradation of wooden shipwrecks: threats he factors affecting dissolved oxygen wood in the marine content; if there is environment vary de- little or no oxygen pending upon whether present they cannot the wood is exposed to respire and survive. seawater or buried After the marine Twithin sediments. borers, fungi and bacteria are the next a. Physical Threat agents of deterioration When a wooden ship sinks it may to consider. These come to rest on or in the seabed. The micro-organisms have marine environment in many a relatively minor part instances is very dynamic and to play in the total physical processes, such as scour breakdown of wood in and sediment movement, around seawater but their Sample of Pinus sylvestris degraded by teredo navalis (P. Palma) shipwreck sites are potentially the activity will affect its long-term of the sediments can be determined most damaging threat as they can preservation. As with the woodborers by measuring what is termed redox destabilise a site leading to the rapid oxygen is a limiting factor for most potential, (Eh), which gives an loss of archaeological material. If a marine fungi and levels of less than indication of the oxidising or reducing shipwreck is not in immediate danger 0.30 ml / litre (approximately 0.5mg / nature of the environment. Oxidising of being “washed away” by currents litre) have been reported to prevent environments are those in which and tides, it will be progressively their growth. Bacteria, unlike the there is a tendency for chemical colonised by a variety of biological marine borers and fungi, can survive species to lose their electrons - this organisms.