The Search for Le Griffon

In June 2013, an international team of American and French archaeologists, professional divers, and the recreational divers who initiated the search commenced test excavations at site 20UM723 in northern Lake Michigan at the hypothesized wreck location of La Salle’’s Le Griffon, which sank in 1679. This symposium presents all aspects of the project from its inception to the current research findings. The undertaking serves as a model for international and interdisciplinary research and underwater community archaeology. Papers will cover the project’’s background including recreational diver community involvement, the historical documentation for Le Griffon and its potential wreck site, scientific remote sensing survey of the purported wreck site, site testing and ground truthing of the remote sensing data, and wood analysis and conservation of the recovered culturally modified timber.