Теңіз археологиясы қоғамының зерттеулері мен қызметі

British organisation to further research in nautical archaeology for the public benefit

The Nautical Archaeology Society (NAS) is a charity registered in England and Wales and in Scotland and is a company limited by guarantee. The charitable aims and object of the company are to further research in Nautical Archaeology and publish the results of such research and to advance education and training in the techniques pertaining to the study of Nautical Archaeology for the benefit of the public. An analysis of how the iconography on this pot has been misinterpreted in recent history and how the image has been adapted for the society's logo, can be read in the editorial of the society's publication the International Journal of Nautical Archaeology (2000) 29.1: 1–2.

The predecessor of the Nautical Archaeology Society was the Council for Nautical Archaeology (CNA). This was formed in 1964
initially under the name the Committee for Nautical Archaeology:"so as to ensure that the many discoveries being made by divers should not go by default through lack of contact with the appropriate learned bodies and to act as a channel of communication with the many interests that were growing up in this new field of research and exploration." The inaugural meeting of the CNA was held in Joan du Plat Taylor's office at the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, at the University of London. The Council includedindividuals from the Council for British Archaeology, the [Science Museum], the [Museum of London], the National Maritime Museum, [Bristol University], and the Institute of Archaeology at London University. The Society for Nautical Research, the Society for Post Medieval Archaeology. and the British Sub Aqua Club were also represented on the council.

The NAS four part qualification system is still used by the numerous International Training Partners that use a locally adapted version of the NAS syllabus to share knowledge and practical skills to local divers and non divers. The list and contact details of current International Training Partners can be found here.

The annual two day NAS conference provides a forum for a wide range of presentations on nautical archaeology. At the event the annual Adopt a Wreck award is presented. Administration of the Muckelroy award was transferred to the NAS in 2009 and is presented every two years to the best publication.

The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology (IJNA) is published bi annually (Print , online ) for NAS by Wiley Publishing Ltd. It is a peer reviewed academic journal but articles by amateur researchers that meet the journal's standards have been published. IJNA aims to cover all aspects of nautical archaeological research including the seas, ships, cargos, harbours and sailors of the past. IJNA was first published in 1972 under the founding editor Joan du Plat Taylor. Since 1980, IJNA has been edited by Ian Morrison, James Kirkman, Valerie Fenwick and Paula Martin. The current editor, Miranda Richardson, took over in 2012. Angela Croome held the position of reviews editor from the journal's foundation until 2016 when Paula Martin took over.

The first in the NAS monograph series is the report of the Sound of Mull Archaeological Project (SOMAP), which ran from 1994 to 2005. The NAS monograph series was edited by Gerald Grainge until 2016, who was replaced by Julian Whitewright.

The NAS Handbook provides an introduction to underwater archaeology. The material in the handbook is consistent with the teaching of the NAS Training programme.

The Joan du Plat Taylor Award is a grant awarded annually by the Nautical Archaeology Society to support publication of nautical archaeological research. The grant was originally funded personally by Joan du Plat Taylor, the founder editor of IJNA and the first president of the Nautical Archaeology Society.

This award is made in memory of Keith Muckelroy and until 2008 was awarded as part of the British Archaeological Awards. In 2008 the administration of the award was transferred to the Nautical Archaeological Society, and the award has been presented bi annually at the NAS conference since 2009. It is awarded for the best published work covering maritime, nautical or underwater archaeology which best reflects the pioneering ideas and scholarly standards of Keith Muckelroy.

In 2004 the Nautical Archaeological Society took custody of the remains of an Elizabethan wreck discovered in the Princes Channel of the Thames Estuary during dredging operations by the Port of London Authority. The remains represented a navigation hazard, and as they had been disturbed and damaged by the dredging operations, preservation in situ was not an option. The remains were investigated by Wessex Archaeology and dendrochronology by Nigel Nayling of the University of Wales gave a construction date of soon after 1754, probably in East Anglia. The remains were transferred to Horsea Island, an estuarine lake near Portsmouth, where the brackish water should enable the timbers to stabilise while they are accessible to students for study and training purposes. The remains of the ship are being studied as part of a five year project also involving the Port of London Authority, the Museum at Docklands, the Institute of Archaeology at University College London, Gresham College and the University of Southern Denmark. The ship has been termed the "Gresham Ship" because one of the guns recovered had the initials and emblem of Sir Thomas Gresham.

The Nautical Archaeology Society manages or participates in research projects with the aims of firstly furthering research and secondly enabling novice professionals and avocational archaeologists to have opportunities to get involved in archaeological research and hence develop individual experience and promote best practice in investigative techniques. Wreckmap projects focus on surveying and recording sites in a specific area. Projects have included the 'Sound of Mull Archaeological Project' (SOMAP), which ran from 1994 to 2005 Wreckmap projects have also been conducted in Portland, Dorset and Teesbay (near Hartlepool). Wreckmap Britain 2005 encouraged recreational divers to submit a recording form for a favourite dive anywhere in Britain. Wreckmap Britain 2006 was launched at the London International Dive Show (LIDS) on 1 April 2006 and has distributed 100,000 recording forms to recreational divers. The results will be added to the Shipwreck Index. WreckMap Britain is conducted in partnership with the Marine Conservation Society (SeaSearch) and sponsored by Crown Estate, the BSAC Jubilee Trust and PADI through the Project AWARE Foundation.

Forton Lake is a community based project to record the hulks of vessels abandoned at Forton Lake, Gosport. The field work and community training for the project was supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund from 2006 to 2007 and the final year of fieldwork in 2008 and publication is being supported by Crown Estate. The project is carried out jointly with the Hampshire and Wight Trust for Maritime Archaeology.

The Diving into History Project, supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund, ran from 2006 to 2008 and included outreach activities to the public and support for Adopt a Wreck groups. In addition community based projects were carried out, including an industrial and oral history project involving underwater survey of Stoney Cove and archive and oral history research.

In 2006 a group of sea cadets were given the opportunity to become maritime archaeologists, learning to scuba dive, to research archives and to design web sites. The project was supported by the Heritage Lottery Fund 'Young roots' programme and was carried out in conjunction with Hartlepool library and Hartlepool Diving Club. An excavation of a wreck was carried out at Middleton Sands on Teesbay and the cadets built their own website documenting their experiences.

The North East England Maritime Archaeology Research Archive (NEEMARA) was established in 2006 thanks to grant funding from English Heritage and from local councils. The archive contains reference material on ships, shipbuilding and archaeological reports and is housed at the offices of Hartlepool Borough Council.

Projects directly run by NAS (including Wreckmap projects) have project reports that are submitted to the appropriate Heritage Environment Record(HER). As part of NAS training, students submit a project report for part two of the NAS Certificate in Underwater and Foreshore Archaeology. Where appropriate reports are submitted to the appropriate local HER. NAS project reports and NAS Part two reports are also available to view at NAS offices in Portsmouth.

The Hartlepool Built project is a project to gather data on ships built in Hartlepool and on the people who sailed them. Designed as a web based oral history type project, the project captures, and publishes on the web information on ships built in Hartlepool over the last 170 years, with photographs and other information from relatives of those whose lives were affected.