The wreckage of a 40-foot-long boat has been discovered by archaeologists near Bordeaux, France, and the sight is definitely not so good. This 1300-year-old ship has become so vulnerable to atmospheric conditions that even the flowing air is enough to dismantle the remnants. The major cause which has been unveiled is that the ship has not been in contact with the outside environmental conditions like oxygen, water, and light for long which made it exposed to notable impacts. Dehydration and splitting of the parts are the major consequences.
Given this, researchers have started to continuously spray the remains of the ship with water every thirty minutes. This will restrict the further deterioration of the material, which can then be easily removed and immersed in water. However, according to the archaeologists, they have not decided yet as to where this crumbled shipwreck is to be buried, but some of them think that it can either be preserved or reburied. Inoculating the wooden material of the ship with resin will preserve it, or they can also lay it to rest in the same place where it was discovered.
That is to say, it has been found that the boat is from the period from 680 to 720 and might have been used for the transportation of goods across the rivers of southwest France and northern Spain. It would be shocking to reveal that the remains of this ship have been exposed for the first time back in 2013, but are now completely discovered in a deplorable state. No matter how miserable the current condition of the vessel is, it was strong and tenacious enough during its operational phase, so much so that it can easily travel across the Atlantic Ocean at a whopping speed, as said by the archaeologists.
Inrap, the organization which is contributing to the exploration process of the boat, said, “The wreck will be cleared and documented by photo surveys, 3D restitution, topography, and recording of the various pieces of wood. It will be dismantled and numbered piece by piece. This dismantling will allow a detailed analysis of the construction of the boat, an essential operation to determine the naval architectural tradition to which it is attached. “
Another researcher who is involved in this exploration project of the vessel said, “The excavation and dismantling of the wreck should be finished by mid-September. For the moment, we are on schedule, and each piece of wood that is dismantled teaches us more about the shipbuilding techniques of the early Middle Ages. “
Moreover, something more surprising and ancient than the remains of this French shipwreck has been discovered as well, and that is the wreckage of “The Goonies”. It was discovered by marine archaeologists from “the hull of the 17th-century Spanish galleon Santo Cristo de Burgos in sea caves in Oregon.” To that end, Jim Delgado, who is an archaeological investigator, said, “These timbers are physical evidence of the stories that have been known and passed down through generations.”