Specific goals of this project included: 1) Excavating the sediment and seagrass covering the shipwreck; 2) Identifying the bow, stern, and the mast-step of the shipwreck; 3) Collecting significant artifacts which might provide cultural or temporal affiliation; 4) Sampling the wood to determine its species and possible construction origin.
ECU and French teams divided the site into three even units and systematically excavated each to preserve the context of cultural material found on the site. Before dredging, the ECU team photographed and made mud maps (underwater site sketches) of the site, and measured the exposed timbers. To dredge each unit, ECU dive teams comprised of two students and one faculty operated a 10-centimeter wide dredge hose attached to an eight-horsepower water pump, staying underwater for 60 minutes at a time. The dredges sucked sediment and sea grass (“spoil”) from the site, and deposited it in spoil bags. Above the site, team members on the barge above sifted through the collected spoil to find artifacts. Once systematically sorted, all artifacts were placed in a secure and labelled container and entrusted to Dr. Christopher Waters, director of heritage resources in Antigua and Barbuda.