Topics Related to Underwater Archaeology Branch

After the weekend, we returned to site with the focus of separating the individual elements that make up the pile. A large anchor, A2, lies atop 8 cannon. With such a large concentration of iron, the cannon and anchor have concreted together to form one massive concretion – too large to recover all together. To recover artifacts from the pile we need to separate them. We began this work this week.

By Kimberly Kenyon, QAR Conservator Some of the highlights from the second part of August include the discovery of a previously unknown cannon under a large concretion and the raising and transport of several large concretions. Here’s an overview:Week 3: August 19-23

The opening of a field season is always busy, and this year proved to be no exception. In our first two weeks of work, the team focused mostly on setup, laying out gridlines and placing sandbags around the perimeter of new excavation units. We recovered some artifacts, too. Here’s a brief overview:Week 1: August 5-9

Behind-the-scenes at last week's live stream event 

The New Year started off with a bang as a crowd of more than 5,000 people turned out at Fort Fisher State Historic Site in Kure Beach Saturday for the 148th anniversary of the Civil War battle that took place there. The battle was instrumental in ending the war as it resulted in the closing of Wilmington’s port, which was then called “the Lifeline of the Confederacy” because of its role in supplying the Confederate army.  It was prominently featured in Steven Spielberg’s recent film Lincoln.

This post is by Sarah Watkins-Kenney, QAR Lab Director and the Underwater Archaeology Branch's Chief Conservator. The N.C. Department of Cultural Resources Queen Anne’s Revenge Conservation Laboratory (QAR Lab) is primarily tasked with the examination, conservation, documentation, and study of artifacts recovered from the shipwreck NCDCR314; Queen Anne’s Revenge (QAR), flagship of the pirate Blackbeard, which sank in 1718.