Pour une histoire de l’archéologie navale. Les bateaux et l’histoire, Éric Rieth, Éditions Classiques Garnier, Paris, 2019, 431p.

Les bateaux et l’histoire Le complexe technique de la construction d’un navire comprend plusieurs techniques et savoir-faire, de matières premières nécessaires à la réalisation du navire et de nombreuses personnes dispersées dans divers sites et paysages nautiques. Donc, la construction d’un navire associe compétences techniques et artistiques : depuis le moment où les arbres ont été choisis et abattus, conçus et façonnés, installés et attachés, jusqu'au moment où le navire est à flot. L’étud..

L’épave Akko 1, Israël

Le site de l’épave Akko 1 se trouve à l’entrée du port de Saint-Jean-d’Acre en Israël, à une profondeur de 4 m. Les fouilles sous-marines se sont déroulées sur trois campagnes entre 2006 et 2008, menées par l’Institut Léon Recanati d’Études Maritimes à l’Université de Haïfa. Des relevés in situ de toutes les parties de l’épave ont été réalisés et les objets récupérés ont été enregistrés et étudiés au laboratoire de l’Institut. Les résultats combinés de la recherche archéologique, de l’étude comparative, de la réalisation de maquettes en bois et de l’étude du contexte historique conduisent à estimer que l’épave Akko 1 est le vestige d’un brick égyptien auxiliaire de 26m de longueur, qui a été construit à la fin du premier quart du XIXe siècle. Il est possible que le navire ait été touché lors du bombardement de 1840 ou à la suite de l’explosion de l’arsenal principal du port.The Akko 1 shipwreck was found in 4m of water inside the ancient harbour of Akko, Israel, and excavated for three seasons (2006–2008) by an expedition headed by the Leon Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies at the University of Haifa. The shipwreck was fully recorded underwater, and the finds were retrieved, registered and documented in the Institute’s laboratory. The combined results of the archaeological research, comparative study, scaled wooden models and the study of the historical background suggest that the Akko 1 shipwreck is the remains of a 26m long Egyptian naval auxiliary brig, which was built at the end of the first quarter of the 19th century. She was apparently sunk during the 1840 naval bombardment of Akko

Introduction

Depuis les temps anciens, les paysages nautiques ont été le théâtre d’événements stratégiques, commerciaux et sociaux. De ce fait, le complexe technique de la navigation est composé de plusieurs techniques et savoir-faire, de matières premières nécessaires à la réalisation d’un navire et de nombreuses personnes dispersées dans divers sites et paysages nautiques. J. Richard Steffy disait que les navires en bois sont les plus merveilleuses structures jamais construites par l’humanité. Il avait ..

How to map submerged Stone Age sites using acoustics (some experimental results)

A central problem for maritime archaeology has been to find survey methods that facilitate efficient and precise mapping of Stone Age sites on the seabed down to the lowest sea level (approximately 140 m) during glacial periods, as well as sites embedded in sea-floor sediments. As predictive landscape modelling has proved to be inadequate for this task, a different approach based on direct detection is required. The observation of an acoustic phenomenon associated with man-made flint debitage but not naturally cracked pieces of flint has opened a window for development of an alternative and efficient direct mapping method. This paper discusses the development of the idea, as well as experimental documentation of the principle on which it is based. It includes a preliminary analysis of how far away on each side of the transducer flint debitage emits an acoustic response, and consequently the required distance between sailing lines for a comprehensive survey to be undertaken at a specific depth

Hommage à Yak Kahanov (1947-2016)

ChroniqueInternational audienc

Synthetic 3D Recording of a Shipwreck Embedded in Seafloor Sediments: Distinguishing Internal Details

3D recording of shipwrecks completely buried in seafloor sediments has great potential as an important aspect of maritime archaeological surveys and management. Buried shipwrecks have been recorded directly with seismic 3D Chirp sub-bottom profilers on an experimental basis. This method is, however, expensive, time-consuming and complicated. This article outlines the application of a faster, cheaper, and less complicated method of synthetic 3D recording, which is also less sensitive to weather conditions. It involves the acquisition of a larger number of seismic 2D high-resolution sub-bottom profiles in a dense grid that does not need to be regular. The method is based on the results of survey work conducted in the Akko Harbour area, on the Carmel coast of Israel, which shows that the shape of the hull of a shipwreck can be precisely determined, and that the sedimentary units bounding it can be outlined and interpreted. Based on an interpretation of the shape of the hull, the depth of the structure was measured, and a 3D image of the shipwreck was subsequently generated. Samples of the sub-seafloor were obtained across the area, and the sample located within the area of the mapped shipwreck was found to contain wood fragments and a piece of rope. This article demonstrates that 2D surveying is a viable and cost-effective alternative to 3D surveying that is able to produce good results

What You Clean Is What You Get: A Novel Chemical Cleaning Technique and the Interpretation of Corrosion Products Found in Late Roman Copper Alloy Coins Retrieved from the Sea

Thirteen Late Roman copper alloy coins with a dark concretion layer from the Early Islamic period Ma‘agan Mikhael B shipwreck were chosen to undergo an experimental chemical cleaning and polishing procedure for removing the concretion while limiting the damage to the surviving metal. These coins, and two more without concretion discovered on the beach nearby, were then subjected to a series of non-destructive analyses–visual testing, XRF, multi-focal light microscopy, and Raman spectroscopy–to determine their state of preservation, identify their corrosion products, and acquire information regarding their core material. An additional coin was examined by destructive metallographic light microscopy and SEM-EDS analyses to gain further information concerning the concretion cover. Preservation varied: For some chemically cleaned coins, a shiny orange-coloured metallic surface was exposed, while others were poorly preserved. Moreover, evidence of the stamping process was also observed. The results show that the suggested chemical cleaning treatment could be useful for processing other copper alloy objects retrieved from underwater environments; we propose a 12-step methodology to this effect

Maritime trade in early Islamic-period glass: New evidence from the Maʻagan Mikhael B shipwreck

The Maʻagan Mikhael B shipwreck is the remains of a 23-m-long merchantman found off the coast of Israel. A significant portion of the wooden hull survived in a good state of preservation, and over 870 glass fragments were found inside the hull remains. The finds included lumps of raw glass and fragments of glass vessels, which were probably intended for recycling. Fragments of bowls, cups, wine glasses, oil lamps, tesserae, bracelets, a glass vessel seal and two almost intact bottles, were also found. Except for a few finds dated to the Late Roman period, most of the glass vessels were dated to the end of the Byzantine and/or the Umayyad periods (7th–8th centuries CE). This is the first time that a glass cargo discovered in a shipwreck from the Early Islamic period has been studied in detail, using typological and analytical methods. The results indicate maritime trade between glass workshops in Israel and Egypt, and that glass cullet was also exported from Israel, although the destination of this cargo is as yet unknown