The Australian Research Council (ARC) has provided a large ARC Linkage
grant for the Australian Historic Shipwreck Protection Project (AHSPP). The project will investigate the excavation, reburial and in-situ preservation of
Clarence (1850), a historically significant colonial wooden trading vessel
located near St Leonards in Port Phillip. This project is the first to have
been endorsed by the Cooperative National Heritage Agenda (CNHA), the
Environment Protection and Heritage Council (EPHC) and the Heritage Chairs
and Officials of Australia and New Zealand (HCOANZ).
The first season of excavation on the Clarence will take place from 16 April
to 12 May 2012 from a jack-up barge located over the site. AHSPP will run
for three years and involve fieldwork with investigators from the University
of Western Australia (UWA), the Australian National University (ANU),
Monash University and the Western Australian Museum (WAM), supported
by research associates and practitioners from the ten partner organisations,
two collaborating universities, students and volunteers. This project brings
together, for the first time, 10 partner organisations in Australia representing
government heritage agencies, museums and the peak avocational body –
the Australasian Institute for Maritime Archaeology (AIMA).
The project website will provide educational information about the excavation,
and daily updates will be made via blogs during the excavation. The project
website is available at:
