Advanced Underwater Archeology Course
The International Centre for Underwater Archaeology in Zadar organized and conducted the ICUA Advanced Underwater Archaeology Course from September 5 to 16, 2022 as part of the archaeological investigation of the ancient shipwreck in Duboka Bay on the island of Šolta.
The course consists of a theoretical and a practical part, and the main strategic goals for young scientists from all over the world are to acquire advanced theoretical and practical knowledge and skills on the techniques and methods of underwater cultural heritage research. The participants of this year's two-week course were: Alexandra Tyas (England), Eleonore Besnard (France), Mihai Duca (Romania) and Jade Monteiro (Brazil).
During the two-week course participants listened to lectures held by employees of ICUA Zadar and associates every morning. They were: Maja Kaleb, Roko Surić, Luka Bekić, Doris Kurtov, Zdenka Vrgoč and Ivan Vidulić (all from ICUA), Pavle Dugonjić (Croatian Conservation Institute) and Marko Hranilović (Submarine solutions d.o.o.).
An underwater survey of the Zadar area was carried out in the first days of the course in order for the participants to adapt to the conditions and equipment. Then the research team travelled to the island of Šolta in the Split archipelago. On Šolta, in Duboka Bay, there is an ancient shipwreck that transported an interesting cargo of Aegean ceramics: amphorae, jugs and mortaria. In 2022 it was decided that the systematic archaeological excavation of the site in Duboka Bay will begin. The course participants took part in setting up grids and georeferencing the site, but they also excavated with the so-called mammoth dredges inside the archaeological probes, recorded information and positioned the finds inside the probe. During the research at the Duboka shipwreck, the participants had the opportunity to use underwater cameras to document finds under the sea under the supervision of archaeologists and associates from the Croatian Conservation Institute Pavle Dugonjić, but also to create a series of photographs in order to produce a 3D model of a part of the site according to the instructions of Roko Surić, archaeologists from ICUA Zadar. The presence of a conservator Zdenka Vrgoč in the field gave additional value to the course because the participants learned firsthand how to handle archaeological finds under the sea and on land before arriving at the workshop where they will be desalinated (packaging, documenting, preparation for transport). A professional diver Marko Hranilović, as an external partner/co-worker, contirubuted certainly to the attractiveness of the course itself by lecturing on the diving safety and diving with surface air supply and performed a demonstration with a Kirby Morgan mask. When the weather did not allow going to the location of the shipwreck, practical exercises were carried out in Banje Bay where the remains of a stone pier from the ancient period were confirmed last year.
We hereby thank and congratulate our dear participants for their successful completion of the course. We believe that with the newly acquired knowledge and skills, they will influence the research of underwater cultural heritage in their respective countries, and we look forward to their future professional steps.
