Sea Reaper Team Recovers More Artifacts on Margarita Site

The Sea Reaper expedition team took the opportunity to make a 6-day trip to the Santa Margarita site during a small weather window last week. The crew was able work efficiently despite the adverse weather conditions. Divers continued to methodically search areas of the known wreck site and recover dozens of shipwreck artifacts.

MRR enjoys the opportunity to conduct salvage operations on the Margarita site through its contract with Motivation, Inc. One of the benefits of working with Motivation, Inc. and the Mel Fisher’s Treasures team is the degree of professionalism throughout the organization. After delivering the newly-recovered artifacts to their conservation facility, chief conservator of Mel Fisher’s Treasures, John Corcoran, began methodically processing and identifying encrusted objects. He determined one of the artifacts to be an iron chisel in relatively good condition.

Chisel recovered from Margarita site, pre-conservation

Chisel recovered from Margarita site, post-conservation.

Identifying such artifacts and the geographic location of their recovery is very important for understanding the dispersal pattern of the ship during its chaotic sinking. For example, an artifact such as a chisel or wood working tool would have likely been held in the carpenter’s area of the ship, toward the bow. Such accumulated data and site-assessment relates directly with archival research and helps MRR and Motivation Inc. to identify which section of the Margarita we are actively working. More importantly, the same information helps us identify the section of the Margarita that has not been located, leading us closer to our primary target.