DIVING WITH A PURPOSE
Submitted by Paul Clunas after attending the
Introduction to Nautical Archaeology Course
- Plymouth 3rd March 2007
After attending a Nautical
Archaeology Society (NAS) lecture at the Epsom club back in early January I was
compelled to learn more about what this really entailed. This lead to me the
classrooms of the Diving Diseases Research Centre (DDRC) in Plymouth on a bright
Devon Spring morning.
The class was composed of twelve
students and two lecturers - Sarah Ward from NAS headquarters and Jon Parlour
who is the South west coordinator who ran the programme as follows :
1)
Introduction to the NAS and Archaeology -
A simple who/what/how/where.
2)
Site types and basic dating methods -
Coins, trees and mud, but nothing about buying them a drink?
3)
Underwater finds -
Don’t sell 'em on Ebay!
4)
2D underwater survey – principles and techniques -
Never understood it was such an exact science – they want it in
millimetres? New
respect developing for Tony Robinson and his Time Team. Base line offsets and
trilateration, I wish I had listened in geometry lessons those many years
ago.
5)
2D underwater survey – dry practical lesson – DDRC garden -
As time was running short, no lunch break, most of us were actually
eating sandwiches/pasties/bananas while measuring between lumps of lead shaped
like bones, cannon balls and assorted cutlery and pieces of china. I was still
trying to master the principles (I was
hampered by an American lady who didn’t understand metric principles – only
joking Janelle!) when noticed everyone else had jumped in
their cars and were off to the pool for the wet session.
6)
2D underwater survey – wet practical lesson -
Reached the dive site (Plymouth College pool) and although last there was
first kitted up as the others all were wearing wet suits, one even using a
rebreather (show off!) So I get to set up the ‘wreck site’ which involved
laying the base lines and placing ‘artifacts’ at various positions.
If you take 12 divers, 4 base lines, 24
sets of fins, one rebreather, 6 clipboards, 6 survey measuring tapes in the area
of an average pool deep-end, it’s a recipe for an archaeological soup and a
perfect demonstration on how not to survey a site!
After nearly an hour in the water, off
again at high speed to the DDRC for drawing up phase – a good knowledge of
draughtsmanship would be an advantage but have since learned that there is a
free computer programme which can do it all for you.
Sarah then told us what we can do next
if interested in developing our knowledge of nautical
archaeology, everything from cannon
identification to dendrochronology (tree rings)
Do have a look at the NAS website for more information. They run the ‘adopt a
wreck’ scheme which may be something for us to consider as a club as there are
actually rather few on our stretch of coast.
We were shown around the DDRC facility and had its function explained,
very impressive and re-assuring however I do hope none of us visit as a patient!
