Captain Kidd's Ship found

[Matusalem]

Ooh, I wanna be the first to post the news! Captain Kidd's SHip Found

The Quedah Merchant!!

[Mae]

Gaaahhh AMAZING!

[Matusalem]

The article says the Quedagh Merchant was found 70 ft offshore in 10 ft deep water. I'm gonna say somewhere in the north or northwest of the island. 307+ years of avoiding shifting sands from direct ocean currents :

[Coastie04]

Just heard about this on the radio. Here's another article about it from the Indiana University's site (IU claimed the find)Kidd's Ship Found

Coastie

[Captain Midnight]

Dang, that's awesome! So now we have three finds: the Whydah, the Queen Anne's Revenge(tentatively), and now the Quedagh Merchant . Sure would be neat if any of them could be raised, or at least parts of them, kind of like the Mary Rose in England.

[Fox]

Not to mention the Speaker (Bowen), Fiery Dragon (Condent), and didn't Clifford's team tentatively identify the remains of Kidd's Adventure Galley some years back?

Now, if we're talking about GAoP era ships deserving of being raised I'd stick a vote in for HMS Stirling Castle (sank 1703) which lies almost entirely intact below deck level beneath the Goodwin Sands. Just think of all the juicy goodies that it probably contains!

[Coastie04]

And, though not GAoP, there's also the Ning-Po at the bottom of San Fransisco harbor. At least she's supposedly a Chinese Pirate vessel. Also, I'm wondering how they identified the Quedagh Merchant. Would there have been a bell or some other form of identification besides having cannons? If so, has any solid evidence been found?

Coastie :angry:

[LadyBarbossa]

I would think since these are grads and undergrads as well as pro archs and professors, etc... they have the ins and out of information and research at their fingertips to find out what vessel they discovered. Eventhough if a bell or some other form of visable ID was found, they'd confirm it with documents, testing, etc.

I copied down on Word the article. It's pretty cool what vessels have been found thus far.

~Lady B

[Desert Pyrate]

We'll see what the actual published report says.

[Matusalem]

You know, um....the laws are kind of lax in the DR.

The reports say gold & silver, and some cannon (er...gun) .....therefore who's to stop anybody anchoring in a 35 ft Bayliner, and some scuba gear and filching through the spot? in fact , 10 ft of water one would only need snorkel gear

............................................................................

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

Didn't they say that the crew plundered her and set her adrift down river and fired her as well? Doubtful any gold or silver would be left behind, but those guns and other artifacts would be interesting to see.

Bo

[Patrick Hand]

.therefore who's to stop anybody anchoring in a 35 ft Bayliner, and some scuba gear and filching through the spot? in fact , 10 ft of water one would only need snorkel gear

That's wot th' swivel guns on th' salvage ship be for........

[Coastie04]

The reports say gold & silver, and some cannon (er...gun) .....therefore who's to stop anybody anchoring in a 35 ft Bayliner, and some scuba gear and filching through the spot? in fact , 10 ft of water one would only need snorkel gear

The report I heard on the radio (an interview with one of the IU staff overseeing the project) stated that there was no treasure, only artifacts. And, a 35ft bayliner would have a mighty hard time raising a cannon imbedded in the sand. However, I can't wait to see what they do end up finding!

Coastie

[Rumba Rue]

Some of the artifacts were shown on our news last night.

There were some pistols and some other things.

[Captain Midnight]

I think just the fact that the ship and its contents alone are associated with William Kidd makes the wreck a fabulous treasure in itself, despite the fact that it was historically looted and burned before being abandoned. Just to have Captain Kidd's naval cannon, or a plate he might have eaten from or held in his hands displayed properly in a museum is a fabulous thing!

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

Agreed!

Bo

[Desert Pyrate]

Why is a burned wreck associated with Kidd more significant than a wreck associated with anyone else from the period? Parrot bones? What is the archaeology of pirates as opposed to any other ship?

[Coastie04]

Why is a burned wreck associated with Kidd more significant than a wreck associated with anyone else from the period? Parrot bones? What is the archaeology of pirates as opposed to any other ship?

I'll take at least a stab at this one. Since we know a good deal about Kidd, it puts the artifacts in better context, thus allowing us to understand them, and the history, better. Additionally, if they are found to actually be from a pirate (or privateer, depending on which side of that line you're on), it will be one of just a few pirate ships found, thus allowing us to identify whether there are any differences between it and any other ship. Even if there are no differences found (from supplies, number of arms, etc), that brings us closer to understanding pirates in that era.

Coastie

[Capt. Bo of the WTF co.]

Not more significant, but any find like this is important to the study of history. Sometimes the archeologists get to 'em before the treasure hunters, and sometimes they don't. There is an intreset in this for some, not so for others. Simple as that.

Bo

[Patrick Hand]

Another point (even though it sounds really negative.....)

Pyrates are "in"..... so getting funding for a "Real Pyrate" ship would have more public apeal than a more interesting ship from the period.....

[Story]

Long-lost Armenian ship, the stuff of legend, to become a “living museum” in the Caribbean

Explorers unravel mystery of the “Quedagh Merchant” hijacked in 1698

http://www.reporter.am/go/article/2009-06-...n-the-caribbean

[Cpt. Alva]

With it they found a pewter tankard. So we now have a true period piece to compare our kits to.

it's a straight sided pewter mug, with very little else of note about it.

[DSiemens]

Another point (even though it sounds really negative.....)

Pyrates are "in"..... so getting funding for a "Real Pyrate" ship would have more public apeal than a more interesting ship from the period.....

Thats a very good point. Most people have this greedy bit o' quality of following the money wher'er it takes em. Pirates just be honest about it.

I find it fascinating that so many pirate ships have been found.

[Jib]

When I saw Barry Clifford speak last year he mentioned doing some work on multiple ships in and around Madagascar. He mentioned the Adventure Galley at that point.

[Tar Bucket Bill]

Yes, I think he tentatively has identified the wreck site of the Adventure Galley due to a ballast pile, some burnt wood and an oar lock. Plus, the fact that the area matches a spot on an old 1700s French map that identifies a careening area at the Ilot Madame in the Baie des Forbans of Ile Sainte Marie. I'm not sure of the exact location of the careening area on the Ilot Madame, but I have a good idea. I've been looking for a diagram or map of the careening area and Adventure Galley, Fiery Dragon, Mocha Frigate, and Ruparelle [renamed November] wreck sites in the bay, but have had no luck finding anything yet.

With all of the pirate ships that he has found in that bay, they could be excavating for years.

-Tar Bucket Bill

Edited June 29, 2013 by Tar Bucket Bill