UNESCO Heritage Mission to the Skerki Banks: press briefing

UNESCO Save the Date

 

UNESCO Heritage Mission to the Skerki Banks: press briefing

 

UNESCO is holding a press briefing ahead of its international diving expedition to explore shipwrecks in Skerki Banks, Mediterranean Sea, will sail from 21 August to 3 September. From Antiquity to World War II, countless ships have sunk around these perilous banks, leaving behind a treasure trove of cargo and artefacts.

 

When? Tuesday, 16 August, at 15.00 CET

 

Where? Online. Please click here to register for the briefing and receive the video link where you'll be able to ask questions.

 

Languages: The press briefing will be conducted in English, with translation into French, if necessary. Journalists are welcome to ask questions in both languages.

 

UNESCO Expert Spokespersons:

• Krista Pikkat: Director of Culture and Emergencies and Secretary of the 2001 Convention on the Protection for Underwater Cultural Heritage and the 1970 Convention on the Means of Prohibiting and Preventing the Illicit Import, Export and Transfer of Ownership of Cultural Property
• Alison Faynot: Underwater Archaeologist, Secretariat of the 2001 UNESCO Convention on the Protection for Underwater Cultural Heritage

About the Mission: The UNESCO scientific mission, composed of archaeologists from eight Mediterranean countries, aims to document the remains of four shipwrecks located on the Skerki Bank, dating from ancient times to the 20^th century. Using ROVs (Remotely Operated Underwater Vehicles), the mission will map the area in which each wreck lies, and document and catalogue the artefacts that remain on the sea floor. The mission will sail from La Seyne-sur-Mer in France on 21 August and dock in Bizerte, Tunisia on 3 September, before returning to La Seyne-sur-mer on 6 September.

 

An International Collaboration on the Protection of Shared Heritage

This project is implemented within the framework of the 2001 UNESCO Convention  on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage . As such, UNESCO will be coordinating an ambitious scientific partnership between eight countries: Algeria, Croatia, Egypt, France, Italy, Morocco, Spain and Tunisia. Archaeologists from each member state will work together to conduct the mission.

The experts will document the site using state-of-the-art underwater ROVs (Remotely Operated Underwater Vehicles). Four shipwrecks will be explored by the ROVs, and new discoveries may be made.

A Ship Graveyard

The Skerki Bank's particular topographical features – from its opposing currents to its many rocks lying just below the surface - have caused many ships to be wrecked here over the centuries.

 

Rich Trading and Military History

The shipwrecks found in the Skerki Bank are particularly rich, as the area has long been one of the busiest shipping channels in the world. In ancient times, it served as a direct maritime route between Carthage and Rome. In the early medieval period, it was an important trade route, notably for the Fatimids who controlled Sicily and the North of Africa. The Skerki Bank was also the scene of several battles during the First and Second World Wars.

 

Treasures Pillaged over the Centuries

Underwater heritage is especially vulnerable to looting as well as removal or destruction by trawling. Many artefacts have been taken from the sea floor by divers and fishermen. To protect the shared heritage on the Skerki Bank, the UNESCO-led mission will focus on demarcating the precise zone in which the shipwrecks lie and catalogue a portion of this underwater cultural heritage, including the artefacts remaining.

 

***

Please click here to register for the briefing

 

Media contact: François Wibaux: f.wibaux@unesco.org, +33 1 45 68 07 46

 

If you would rather not receive future communications from UNESCO, let us know by clicking here.
UNESCO, 7, place de Fontenoy, PARIS, NA FRANCE France