Shipwrecks
Many thousands of shipwrecks lie off the coast of Ireland. Shipwrecks have been likened to archaeological time capsules, capable of revealing information about life, technology, trade and warfare at the specific moment they were lost. This ability to inform us about many aspects of our history make them of interest to archaeologists and part of our shared heritage.
Over the past number of years we have been developing a database of shipwreck incidents recorded in historical sources. The shipwreck archive includes cases of known and unknown wreck sites and maritime casualties – where the vessel in question was salvaged or recovered. It is therefore not a record of actual archaeological sites in every case, rather an indicator of past shipping loss in geographical and chronological terms. Efforts to test the database are being carried out largely through marine geophysics, surveying large portions of the seabed for any remains. The results help to target sites for diver inspection with the hope of identifying the wreck.
Northern Ireland's most famous, and only designated wreck site is the Spanish Armada vessel, La Girona, which foundered at Lacada Point in 1588. Finds recovered from La Girona during archaeological investigation are now displayed in the Ulster Museum. The designation order on this site (under The Protection of Wrecks Act, 1973) requires that any diver wishing to visit it must hold a licence.
