Located off North Carolina’s coast in the Beaufort Inlet lies shipwreck 31CR314.
The submerged wreck was first discovered by Intersal Inc. (a permitted private research firm) divers on November 21, 1996. Initially sighted were some of the ships multiple cannons, and anchors. The divers were using information provided by Intersal’s founder Phil Masters. Former Intersal Inc. Director of Operations Mike Daniel used the historical accounts to assist in the location of the wreck. The site’s exploration has been assisted by many different organizations. The primary contributors include The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources Office of Archaeology, The Maritime Research Institute, East …show more content…
Currents in the area were not strong enough to inhibit work, visibility was fair, and most materials were in relatively close proximity. Only when deeper excavation was undergone did the project prove to be slightly more difficult due an influx of sand deposition. An estimated 300,000 artifacts ranging from 2000-pound cannons, to the smallest speck of gold were discovered. Following excavation, attention moved to the recovery and conservation of artifacts from the site. It was still unknown at that time if the wreck was indeed the Queen Anne’s Revenge, although the massive size of the ship, and well-stocked armory of at least 24 iron cannons were fitting of the description of Blackbeard’s flagship. The recovered artifacts had to be tested and analyzed to determine the ships definite identity. While it was strongly hypothesized from the time of discovery that the shipwreck was that of the infamous pirate Blackbeard (Edward Teach), it was not officially confirmed so until August 2011 by Archeologists with the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources’ Office of State
The submerged wreck was first discovered by Intersal Inc. (a permitted private research firm) divers on November 21, 1996. Initially sighted were some of the ships multiple cannons, and anchors. The divers were using information provided by Intersal’s founder Phil Masters. Former Intersal Inc. Director of Operations Mike Daniel used the historical accounts to assist in the location of the wreck. The site’s exploration has been assisted by many different organizations. The primary contributors include The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources, The North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources Office of Archaeology, The Maritime Research Institute, East …show more content…
Currents in the area were not strong enough to inhibit work, visibility was fair, and most materials were in relatively close proximity. Only when deeper excavation was undergone did the project prove to be slightly more difficult due an influx of sand deposition. An estimated 300,000 artifacts ranging from 2000-pound cannons, to the smallest speck of gold were discovered. Following excavation, attention moved to the recovery and conservation of artifacts from the site. It was still unknown at that time if the wreck was indeed the Queen Anne’s Revenge, although the massive size of the ship, and well-stocked armory of at least 24 iron cannons were fitting of the description of Blackbeard’s flagship. The recovered artifacts had to be tested and analyzed to determine the ships definite identity. While it was strongly hypothesized from the time of discovery that the shipwreck was that of the infamous pirate Blackbeard (Edward Teach), it was not officially confirmed so until August 2011 by Archeologists with the North Carolina Department of Cultural Resources’ Office of State