Sediment Identification Challenges: Is That Really Ancient Bilge Mud?

Author(s): Meko Kofahl

Year: 2013

Summary

Excavations of shipwrecks at Tantura Lagoon in Israel between 1995 and 1997 resulted in a rich collection of sediment specimens which have been catalogued as ‘bilge mud’ – the residue that collects in the bottom of a ship’s hold. Some of these samples have been analyzed for the presence of pollen, seeds, insects and other organic materials, but the body of the sediment itself also holds important clues to the past travels of the vessels. Using techniques more common to oceanography and sedimentology than underwater archaeology, these sediments are being analyzed for chemical and mineralogical signatures that may connect them to unique land locations.

Cite this Record

Sediment Identification Challenges: Is That Really Ancient Bilge Mud?. Meko Kofahl. Presented at Society for Historical Archaeology, Leicester, England, U.K. 2013 ( tDAR id: 428364)

Keywords

Spatial Coverage

min long: -129.199; min lat: 24.495 ; max long: -66.973; max lat: 49.359 ;

Individual & Institutional Roles

Contact(s): Society for Historical Archaeology

Record Identifiers

PaperId(s): 403