Shipwreck Found Near Haiti Might be Columbus' Santa Maria
- 10 years ago
Researchers investigating a sunken ship off the coast of Haiti believe they have found the Santa Maria, one of ships used by Christopher Columbus on his 1492 voyage to the new world.
Researchers investigating a sunken ship off the coast of Haiti believe they have found the Santa Maria, one of the ships used by Christopher Columbus’ on his 1492 voyage to the new world.
According to Columbus’ diary, after the Santa Maria ran aground, he and his crew established La Navidad, the first European settlement in the Americas.
Evidence from the wreckage is consistent with the location where the Santa Maria probably sank, taking into account where La Navidad was built and the movement of the ocean current.
The sunken ship was first discovered and photographed in 2003, but since then the wreckage has been looted and all of the important visible telltale objects like the cannon were taken.
Renowned American underwater archaeological explorer Barry Clifford, who led the investigation, is quoted as saying: "Ideally, if excavations go well and depending on the state of preservation of any buried timber, it may ultimately be possible to lift any surviving remains of the vessel, fully conserve them and then put them on permanent public exhibition in a museum in Haiti."
Researchers investigating a sunken ship off the coast of Haiti believe they have found the Santa Maria, one of the ships used by Christopher Columbus’ on his 1492 voyage to the new world.
According to Columbus’ diary, after the Santa Maria ran aground, he and his crew established La Navidad, the first European settlement in the Americas.
Evidence from the wreckage is consistent with the location where the Santa Maria probably sank, taking into account where La Navidad was built and the movement of the ocean current.
The sunken ship was first discovered and photographed in 2003, but since then the wreckage has been looted and all of the important visible telltale objects like the cannon were taken.
Renowned American underwater archaeological explorer Barry Clifford, who led the investigation, is quoted as saying: "Ideally, if excavations go well and depending on the state of preservation of any buried timber, it may ultimately be possible to lift any surviving remains of the vessel, fully conserve them and then put them on permanent public exhibition in a museum in Haiti."