Skerki Banks

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Skerki Banks
Submerged bank
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Skerki Banks (Mediterranean)
ReefsEsquirques and Keith's Reef

The Skerki Banks, also known as the Skerki Channel, are an area of relatively shallow open sea, situated in the central Mediterranean in the Strait of Sicily between Sicily and Tunisia. 37°47′N10°46′E / 37.783°N 10.767°E / 37.783; 10.767

Known reefs in the area include the Esquirques, [1] two large rocky reefs of volcanic origin surrounded by a sandbank, and Keith's Reef.

Since 1988, various archaeological surveys have located a concentration of ancient shipwrecks in the area. [2] The site of these ancient wrecks was discovered by Robert Ballard and later explored by both Ballard and Anna Marguerite McCann. [3]

The area is adjacent to the Skerki Narrows between Sicily and Cape Bon and was known as "Bomb Alley" to Allied sailors during World War II due to its proximity to Axis air bases and the difficulty of protecting convoys from air attack. On 2 December 1942 it was the site of the Battle of Skerki Bank, where a squadron of Allied cruisers destroyed an Italian convoy.

In September 2022, archaeologists from eight countries started collaborating with UNESCO to explore the Skerki Banks—particularly the unexplored Tunisian side of it—and look for possible shipwrecks on the seafloor. [4] [5]

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Maritime archaeology is a discipline within archaeology as a whole that specifically studies human interaction with the sea, lakes and rivers through the study of associated physical remains, be they vessels, shore-side facilities, port-related structures, cargoes, human remains and submerged landscapes. A specialty within maritime archaeology is nautical archaeology, which studies ship construction and use.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Robert Ballard</span> Retired US Navy officer and professor of oceanography

Robert Duane Ballard is an American retired Navy officer and a professor of oceanography at the University of Rhode Island who is most noted for his work in underwater archaeology: maritime archaeology and archaeology of shipwrecks. He is best known for the discoveries of the wrecks of the RMS Titanic in 1985, the battleship Bismarck in 1989, and the aircraft carrier USS Yorktown in 1998. He discovered the wreck of John F. Kennedy's PT-109 in 2002 and visited Biuku Gasa and Eroni Kumana, who saved its crew.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Shipwreck</span> Physical remains of a beached or sunk ship

A shipwreck is the wreckage of a ship that is located either beached on land or sunken to the bottom of a body of water. Shipwrecking may be intentional or unintentional. There were approximately three million shipwrecks worldwide as of January 1999, according to Angela Croome, a science writer and author who specialized in the history of underwater archaeology.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wreck diving</span> Recreational diving on wrecks

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The Institute of Nautical Archaeology (INA) is the world's oldest organization devoted to the study of humanity's interaction with the sea through the practice of archaeology.

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HMS <i>Sirius</i> (82) Cruiser

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Battle of Skerki Bank</span>

The Battle of Skerki Bank was an engagement during the Second World War which took place near Skerki Bank in the Mediterranean Sea in the early hours of 2 December 1942. Force Q, a flotilla of Royal Navy cruisers and destroyers, attacked Convoy H, an Italian convoy and its Regia Marina escort of destroyers and torpedo boats.

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Ancient Black Sea shipwrecks found in the Black Sea date to Antiquity. In 1976, Willard Bascom suggested that the deep, anoxic waters of the Black Sea might have preserved ships from antiquity because typical wood-devouring organisms could not survive there. At a depth of 150m, the Black Sea contains insufficient oxygen to support most familiar biological life forms.

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Honor Frost</span> Pioneer in underwater archaeology

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Anna Marguerite McCann</span> American art historian and archaeologist (1933–2017)

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<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gozo Phoenician shipwreck</span> Phoenician shipwreck near the coast of Malta

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References

  1. James Stanier Clarke; John McArthur (2 September 2010). The Naval Chronicle: Volume 25, January-July 1811: Containing a General and Biographical History of the Royal Navy of the United Kingdom with a Variety of Original Papers on Nautical Subjects. Cambridge University Press. pp. 294–. ISBN   978-1-108-01864-7.
  2. "An early imperial shipwreck in the deep sea off Skerki Bank" (PDF).
  3. McCann, Anna Marguerite. "The Skerki Bank Deep Water Archaeological Project, 1988-2004". ammccann.com. Archived from the original on July 7, 2010. Retrieved November 1, 2017.
  4. Magazine, Smithsonian; Kuta, Sarah. "Archaeologists From Eight Countries Team Up to Explore the Skerki Banks". Smithsonian Magazine.
  5. "Shipwrecks ahoy? Unesco's underwater mission scours sea bed off Italy for archaeological treasures". The Art Newspaper - International art news and events. August 30, 2022.