new vessel could probably be dated to the 16th or 15th century BC, making it older than the Uluburun wreck, dating to the 14th century BC and hitherto referred to as the “oldest wreck in the world.” The team used sonar to scan the site and documented it photographically. The ship remains are located on an incline on the seafloor, and the team limited its diving explorations to a depth of 55 meters, necessitating a plan to return to the site and explore the lower portion in 2019. The shipwreck cargo is partially obscured by sand; the archaeology team observed and recorded the site but did not take samples so as to avoid disturbing it. They observed pillow-type ingots, presumably of copper, that might be Buchholz/Bass Type 1 ingots, which are typically dated to 16th and 15th century BC. It is the presence of these ingots in the cargo that led the team to believe that this wreck might be as old as they have stated. A closer investigation of the site—and carbon and lead isotope analysis—later this year should offer more definitive conclusions about the ship and its cargo. (You can view the Palestine Exploration Quarterly article through the Taylor and Francis Online website at www.tandfonline.com. It is an Open Access (OA) website.) … The Brier Foundation is seeking applicants for its Women in Maritime Transportation Scholarships. In 2004, aviator Pinky Brier (1909–2008) formed the foundation 48
to help women achieve their goals as they pursue careers in aviation and in maritime transportation. Each year, multiple scholarships between $3,000 and $5,000 are awarded to help young women get a head start and develop into productive, self confident, and independent professionals in an industry traditionally dominated by men. In the maritime category, the scholarship is intended for those seeking careers as a bridge officer; in the fields of navigation, naval architecture, or naval engineering; and applicants working towards a merchant marine license (USCG). (Details and applications are available online at www.the brierfoundation.org.) ... The Department of the Interior’s Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) announced in May the opening of its Virtual Archaeology Museum. In the course of its mission conducting underwater research and oil and gas exploration, BOEM has discovered numerous shipwreck sites. Collaborating with NOAA’s Office of Exploration and Research (OER), BOEM has been collecting data on these sites in the Atlantic and in the Gulf of Mexico. With the creation of the virtual museum, this data is being made available to the public, providing video, detailed three-dimensional (3D) models, and mosaic maps of shipwrecks from the 19th and 20th centuries. “With the ROVs we can clearly examine the artifacts in these shipwrecks up close, in thousands of feet of water. Through the use of the 3D models, we can see each
shipwreck site as a whole and monitor changes to it over time,” said BOEM Gulf of Mexico regional director Mike Celata. “The Virtual Archaeology Museum will serve as a valuable teaching asset in both school and university classrooms, and the data collected will be a focal point for underwater researchers, its online presence allowing collaboration worldwide.” (www. boem.gov/Virtual-Archaeology-Museum) … Just in time for D-Day commemorations, the USS LST 393 Veterans Museum in Muskegon, Michigan, will be welcoming a new piece aboard their ship: a Bofors 40mm twin-barreled anti-aircraft cannon. The museum group has been looking for a Bofors cannon for more than a decade; they located one in a park in Illinois. The cannon arrived in Musekegon
uss lst-393 veterans museum
courtesy hakan Ö niz
In a paper published in the online journal Palestine Exploration Quarterly this April, Archaeologist Hakan Öniz reported the 2018 discovery of a new Bronze age shipwreck at the edge of the Ancient Lycia-Lukka Region in Kumluca on the west coast of Antalya, the same region where George Bass and Cemal Pulak located the Gelidonia and Uluburun wrecks. Öniz believes that the
last year, where it has been undergoing restoration. As of press time, the museum planned to feature the cannon restored to its post on deck by the 75th anniversary of D-Day on 6 June. LST 393 would have carried multiple Bofors guns into battle; the specimen to be installed on its deck was built in 1942 at York Lock and Safe Co. in York, Pennsylvania. The 18,000-pound gun was installed in the park in Oak Forest, Illinois, in 1976 along with other military equipment as part of the town’s observation of the American bicentennial celebration. A Chicago-area group called the Veterans Garage assisted the USS LST 393 Veterans Museum volunteers in transporting the weapon from Illinois to Muskegon. Having spent decades in the elements, the cannon then received a few new parts, some welding and a paint job. LST 393 participated in three battles during World War II, including D-Day at Omaha Beach, and was SEA HISTORY 167, SUMMER 2019