Institute of Nautical Archaeology

10/30/2026

Vessel #4 in is Millawanda!

Millawanda: 2000
Istanbul, Türkiye

Specially designed to transport, launch, and retrieve the submersible Carolyn, the catamaran Millawanda joined the INA research fleet in 2000. This 45 foot–long steel catamaran, designed by INA survey alumnus Merih Karabağ, features a central hinged ramp that lowered Carolyn into the water. Cruising along the surface, Millawanda followed an attached buoy to accompany the submersible Carolyn during surveys, remaining in touch wirelessly. In addition to acting as a tender for Carolyn, Millawanda was designed to provide support for a complete diving expedition. Millawanda is the Hittite name for Miletus, an archaeological site in western Anatolia with Minoan ties. Millawanda was sold to Yalıkavak Marina where it was used to sink buoy weights.

10/25/2026

The work that INA does would not be possible without the support of our Board of Directors, who contribute generously and annually, as well as the donors and members who help fund the Bodrum Research Center, the INA fleet, various endowments, and the hundreds of survey, excavation, and research projects that INA associates have conducted around the world.

INA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, international research organization founded in 1972 by George F. Bass, who pioneered the science of archaeological excavation under water.

Since INA’s establishment as a nonprofit, the Board of Directors has come together—sometimes several times a year—to discuss current INA projects, select recipients of INA grant funding, and plan for upcoming surveys, excavations, conservation, and publications.

1973–1992, from Philadelphia to St. Louis, NYC to DC, College Station, Dallas, Bodrum, Jamaica, and other places in between.

PA – MO – NY – DC – NY – PA – VA – TX – NY – TX – DC – NY – DC – TX – DC – TX – TUR – TX – JAM – TX – OK – TX – OK – TX – JAM – TX

10/23/2026

10/23/2026

Our third vessel in is the submersible, Carolyn!

Carolyn: 2000
SEAmagine Hydrospace Corporation, Claremont, CA

Seeking an affordable vessel that would allow archaeologists to safely search for shipwrecks in shallow waters, INA ordered the construction of Carolyn, a two-person SEAmobile submersible, in 2000. Designed in the 1990s for the tourist trade, the SEAmobile can descend to 150 feet and travel at a speed of one knot. The submersible was named Carolyn after the wife of Malcolm Wiener, founder of the Institute for Aegean Prehistory, which funded its purchase. In addition to facilitating the discovery of new shipwrecks, Carolyn allowed directors to observe the work of diving archaeologists and gave non-diving visitors an up-close view of an underwater archaeological excavation.

10/20/2026

Today, B is for BALLAST. Ballast was crucial for a ship’s safety and stability. Ballast was needed to account for unloaded cargo weight or could be dumped when goods were added to the ship. Ballast could take any form—iron, lead, stone—anything to provide weight and was placed low in the ship’s hold.

It was all about balance—too much weight and the ship could become stiff, with any return to an upright position to happen qu**ky and jerkily, causing excessive strain and potential damage to lashings, gear, and crew. Too little weight, however, could render the ship’s center of gravity to be too high, creating a much slower righting, still creating strain or injury to all parties aboard.

Images: Assortment of shingle ballast from the 17th-century Kalamota shipwreck (Croatia). Images by Pin-Wen Chen and Bethany Becktell.

10/17/2026

International Archaeology Day is a celebration of archaeology and its contributions to society. Here at INA, we are grateful for our nautical archaeology colleagues around the globe as well as our members, donors, and sponsors who help make that work possible!

How are you choosing to spend today to celebrate the archaeologists in your life? Message us or share in the comments below!

10/16/2026

Our second vessel for is the submersible, Asherah.

Asherah: 1964
General Dynamics Corporation, Groton, CT

Named for the ancient Semitic sea-goddess Asherah, this two-person submersible was the first commercially built, manned research submersible, capable of descending to 600 ft (180 m). The 16 foot–long submersible could travel at speeds up to four knots; electrically powered propellers allowed it to move forward, backward, up, or down. Built at the request of George Bass for the University of Pennsylvania Museum, Asherah was taken to Türkiye in 1964 and 1967 to aid in identifying shipwrecks. Although Bass later noted that “visibility through Asherah’s tiny ports limited its use in surveys,” Asherah proved revolutionary in mapping and photographing shipwreck sites. Asherah was sold in 1969. As of 2023, Asherah was acquired by the Mystic Sea Port Museum in Connecticut.

10/13/2026

Today, we kick off our nautical archaeology alphabet series! We begin with A for ANCHOR.

“The anchor is an iconic symbol of our maritime past. For over 4,000 years the anchor has been every mariner’s vital item of safety equipment. Sometimes the anchor is the last remaining visible symbol of an incident at sea – whether cut loose in an emergency or marking the last resting place of a shipwreck.” , Big Anchor Project

Anchors have likely been around as long as watercraft in order to help secure watercraft. The earliest types of anchors were probably made of stone, and other materials have been used throughout history. Anchor shapes have several variations, from a simple stone with a single hole, to the more complex grapnel anchor with flukes projecting from arms.

During the initial 1960 excavation of the wreck at Cape Gelidonya, no anchors were found in the vicinity. When the site was revisited in the late 1980s and 1990s, a large, nearly 200-kg stone anchor was found. At the site of the Uluburun wreck, 24 stone anchors, 16 at the bow and 8 at the stern, were discovered. At other sites, anchor stocks have been recovered.

1: Kris Trego raising a lead anchor stock at Kızılburun in 2006. © Institute of Nautical Archaeology, photographer Don Frey
2: Forward starboard bower anchor following the removal of concretion. From the Serçe Limanı Glass Wreck. © Institute of Nautical Archaeology
3: Brendan Burke examines an anchor. Image by Patrick Boyle
4: A Roman stone anchor from the coast of Saguntum (Sagunto), Spain. 1st century CE. (Archaeological Museum, Sagunto). Image by Mark Cartwright, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
5: Reconstruction of a Roman ship’s anchor, from the Archaeological Museum in Tarragona, Spain. Image by Mark Cartwright, Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-ShareAlike
6: Diagram of an anchor

Have a neat anchor photo you would like to share? Message us or leave a picture in the comments!

10/09/2026

Over the course of its history, INA has had five research vessels. Today begins the start of a six-week series about them in !

R/V Virazon: 1953
Higgins Industries, New Orleans, LA

The research vessel Virazon began life as T-502, a U.S. Army T-Boat (transport/tug). In 1964, the U.S. Navy loaned Virazon to George Bass’ research project off the Turkish coast, where it served both as a dive boat and a tender for the submersible Asherah. The 65 foot–long ship was returned to the U.S. military in 1969; a decade later, INA purchased Virazon. Outfitted with living quarters and equipment for a diving operation, Virazon served as a vital base for INA surveys and excavations from 1979 to 2015. Virazon was sold to Barakuda Dive Center near Bodrum in 2016.

10/07/2026

Raft, float, or boat? The differences in these three types of watercraft are based on displacement! Rafts are watercraft that derive their buoyancy from the reserve flotation of materials less dense than water whereas floats are closed, hollow vessels that displace water and support individuals above the water. Boats are open, hollow vessels that displace water and carry loads inside the hull. Ships are usually more complex, seagoing vessels.

Image 1: A woman using a raft to transport her daughter and goats in the haors (wetland ecosystem) of Bangladesh. Creative Commons Media.
Image 2: Relief fragment of an Assyrian soldier conducting captives across the water. Neo-Assyrian, 668–627 BC. Metropolitan Museum of Art, NY. Public Domain.
Image 3: Three Liberian men haul a boat inland. Image by Megan Crutcher, Kru/Krao Coast Heritage Initiative.