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Namibia: Team Restarts Work At Shipwreck Site

The Namibian (Windhoek), 11 September 2008, by Werner Menges

 

http://allafrica.com/stories/200809110652.html

 

A team of local and international experts visited the site this week after its sand covering was removed on Monday, the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Youth, National Service, Sport and Culture, Dr Peingeondjabi Shipoh, told The Namibian yesterday.

He said the team is expected to work at the site for a month or longer, depending on what they find at the spot.

 

The discovery of the remains of a wrecked ship, now believed to date from the 16th century, some 12 kilometres north of the Orange River near Oranjemund on April 1 has been trumpeted by diamond mining company Namdeb as Namibia's most important archaeological find of the century.

 

In an initial recovery of objects from the shipwreck site during April, artefacts that included thousands of Spanish and Portuguese gold coins, minted in the late 1400s and early 1500s, bronze cannons, more than 50 elephant tusks, several tons of copper, navigational instruments and pewter tableware were discovered at the site and removed for safekeeping.

 

The site lies under sea level in Namdeb's Mining Area 1, in an area where a huge sea wall had been built to keep back the ocean so that mining operations could be done. The site was covered with sand again after the initial recovery of artefacts.

 

According to a statement issued by the Ministry of Youth, National Service, Sport and Culture on Tuesday, the wreck has been provisionally identified as a Portuguese trading vessel that foundered during an outward-bound voyage to Asia.

 

Except for more than 2 000 gold coins and 1,4 kilograms of silver coins, the ship carried a cargo of ivory, over 1 000 copper ingots and other metal ingots that still have to be identified, according to the Ministry.

 

The time of its sinking is estimated to have been between 1525 and the middle 1500s, the Ministry also stated.

 

Because of "the tremendous importance of this archaeological discovery", Government has decided to preserve the remains of the shipwreck and put these and its related archaeological materials on display once work on the find has been completed, according to the statement.

 

Government-supported excavation work at the site started on Monday, the Ministry stated.

 

Directing the work as the principal archaeologist on the project is Dr Bruno Werz of the Southern African Institute of Maritime Archaeology, while Dr Dieter Noli, who carried out preliminary excavations at the site during April, will also remain involved in the project.

The Ministry stated that, given the international value of the discovery, Government has also invited other scientists from Portugal, Spain, Zimbabwe and the Centre for Maritime Archaeology and Conservation at Texas A& M University in the United States of America to take part in the project.