For those of you who missed The National Heritage Board’s recent piece on the Temasek and Shah Muncher wrecks that shifts shifts attention to the long post-excavation slog: desalination, cleaning, stabilization, cataloguing, storage, and research for more than 10 tonnes of recovered material. — read on. “That may sound less glamorous than pulling porcelain from the seabed, but it is where shipwreck archaeology becomes knowledge rather than just salvage. The two wrecks are a remarkable pair: the Temasek Wreck is the first ancient shipwreck found in Singapore waters and dates to the 14th century, contemporary with the old port of Temasek, while the Shah Muncher was an India-built merchant vessel that sank in 1796 on a voyage between China and India. Together they bracket centuries of maritime history, and the real lesson here is that underwater archaeology does not end when the artefacts surface; that is precisely when the hard work begins.” Read the story here … and for SEACS members who missed Dr. Mike Flecker’s fascinating talk on how and why he became a marine archeologist, log in to our ‘Members Videos’ page for a real treat.
