Odyssey Marine makes the case against marine salvage

Recovering undersea treasures has never been easier. The problem is, much of the marine salvage business is as rotten as the scrap metal business on land. Looting is quite the norm under the sea.

UNESCO, the culture departments of governments, those in heritage and conservation, as well as most professional bodies, are moving against disturbing archaeology anywhere, unless it is to rescue it.

Though laws and conventions are slow to follow the trend, as the great maritime powers endeavour to leave open their options, the movement to protect heritage sites is appearing to be inexorable.

The great maritime powers have little to gain from marine salvage. They do not need the money, they have already a good grasp of their history and many of their ships are both sovereign property and war graves.

The argument that non-invasive surveying can replace salvage is gaining strength as geophysics provides ever-more advanced technologies.

We will report on ongoing events and offer our commentary. We know rather more than reaches the mainstream media, for the world of archival research on shipwrecks and marine salvage is quite small.