Institute of Nautical Archaeology

09/01/2026

Funding Opportunity! INA awards thousands annually to scholars for projects and publications. Applications are due each year on October 1.

VISIT
https://nauticalarch.org/funding/

DOWNLOAD
⬇️ The INA Proposal Form

VERIFY
☑️ Form is proofread
☑️ CVs of staff attached
☑️ Map of work area and permits obtained

SUBMIT
📧 Email your documents to [email protected] by Thursday, October 1, 2026.

08/31/2026

Ahead of the Serçe Limanı Hellenistic Shipwreck excavation season, we spoke with Ethan Mock, a Ph.D. student in the Nautical Archaeology Program at Texas A&M University, at the Bodrum Research Center.

Having participated in INA excavations over the past several years, Ethan discusses his interest in maritime history and explains the unique challenges and scientific principles involved in working beneath the sea.

Ethan also shares how learning about the Uluburun Shipwreck during his university studies became a defining moment in his decision to pursue underwater archaeology. He reflects on the role of Mediterranean trade in connecting cultures throughout history and recounts how he first became involved with INA.

08/27/2026

The excavation season is now underway, but the work began long before the first dive—with an intensive period of preparation. At Yalıkavak Marina in Bodrum, oxygen tanks and equipment for the scientific work were loaded aboard ARV Virazon II, as the rhythm of the new season gradually began to take shape.

As the vessel made its way toward the excavation site, preparations continued on deck. Equipment was put in place, final checks were completed, and the airlifts were prepared for use during the season’s first dives.

Behind every find revealed underwater are hours of work, careful planning, and coordination that often remain unseen. In many ways, one of the most important stories of an excavation season begins even before the team descends beneath the surface.

Video: Philippe Kermeen© INA – Institute of Nautical Archaeology

08/03/2026

Each year, INA supports archaeological fieldwork and research around the world, helping reveal new evidence of our shared maritime past. Many of these projects take place during the summer field season, when archaeological teams return to sites across the globe. One such project is the Kalamota Shipwreck off Croatia's Koločep Island.

Earlier this summer, Irena Radić Rossi (University of Zadar/INA Affiliated Scholar), Piotr Bojakowski (Texas A&M University), and Katie Custer Bojakowski (Texas A&M University) completed their third season of excavation of a 17th-century shipwreck located off Cape Ratac on Croatia's Koločep Island.

The ship was carrying a cargo of glass, particularly square windowpanes and fine stemware. Noteworthy recent finds include part of a sundial, small wooden boxes, lead seals belonging to textile merchants, a near-complete incense burner, an intact egg, a large metal basin, two Ottoman weights, and a glass gr***de.

These discoveries continue to expand our understanding of Mediterranean trade, shipboard life, and the diverse cargoes transported across the Adriatic during the 17th century.

Learn more about the Kalamota Shipwreck and other INA projects by visiting our website:

Kalamota (Cape Ratac) Wreck:
https://nauticalarch.org/projects/cape-ratac-wreck/

Your support helps make projects like this possible. Become an INA supporter or make a donation:

https://support.nauticalarch.org/

07/19/2026

We’re delighted to share that INA has been featured as the "Charity of the Week" in "The Week" magazine, a distinction reserved for those non-profits that have earned a four-star rating from Charity Navigator.

INA is proud to maintain a strong commitment to shipwreck archaeology through research, education, practice, and the preservation of our shared maritime past.

We do this by keeping expenses low so we can allocate annual funding to surveys, excavations, and research that helps bring maritime history to light through the science of shipwreck archaeology.

Thank you to our directors, donors, supporters, and everyone who makes our mission possible.

Learn more about INA and support our mission through our Charity Navigator profile:

https://www.charitynavigator.org/search?q=institute++of+nautical+archaeology

You can also support INA directly through our official donation page:
https://support.nauticalarch.org/give

INA is a non-profit, international research organization founded in 1972 by Dr. George F. Bass †, who pioneered the science of archaeological excavation under water.

07/17/2026

⚓ The first voyage of the new field season...

Yesterday at 5:40 AM, ARV Virazon II departed from Yalıkavak Marina in Bodrum for the Serçe Limanı Hellenistic Shipwreck excavation.

Once the team completes the final preparations at the excavation site, the underwater archaeologists will return to diving. As in previous seasons, this year's work will continue to focus on documenting and scientifically investigating the shipwreck.

The goal is to make new discoveries and reveal more of the shipwreck's story...

Video Deborah Carlson, Tuba Ekmekçi Littlefield @ INA – Institute of Nautical Archaeology

Learn more about INA and support our mission through our official donation page:

https://support.nauticalarch.org/give

07/14/2026

The excitement of a new field season is underway at the INA Bodrum Research Center.

Before heading to the Hellenistic Shipwreck at Serçe Limanı, underwater archaeology students Sadie McCaskill, Olivia Reinhart, Ethan Mock, and Tyler McStravick from Texas A&M University's Nautical Archaeology Program are completing pre-season preparations at the INA Bodrum Research Center (BRC) ahead of the upcoming excavation.

During their time at the BRC, the students also had the opportunity to observe the conservation work that takes place after artifacts are brought to the laboratory.

One part of this work involved the transfer of artifacts from the Bodrum Museum of Underwater Archaeology to the BRC conservation laboratory. Working alongside INA conservators, they were introduced to the process of removing concretions from archaeological ceramics, gaining first-hand insight into an essential stage of artifact conservation.

Underwater archaeology extends far beyond the dive itself. For the students, their time at the BRC provided a broader perspective on the discipline by introducing them not only to field preparations, but also to the conservation work that continues long after artifacts leave the seabed.

06/29/2026

Few shipwrecks have changed our understanding of the ancient world as profoundly as Uluburun.

The Archaeological Institute of America (AIA) has released a new edition in its “Uncovering” series, this time focusing on the Uluburun Shipwreck—one of the Top 10 most significant archaeological discoveries of the 20th Century.

Richly illustrated and accessible to a wide audience, the publication follows the story of the shipwreck's discovery and excavation by INA archaeologists while exploring the merchants, trade networks, and maritime world of the Late Bronze Age.

You can own a copy of “Uncovering Uluburun” by making a modest donation to INA's sister organization, the Archaeological Institute of America (AIA). Like the AIA, INA also relies on the generosity of donors like you to help us bring history to light through the science of shipwrecks like Uluburun.

Preview “Uncovering Uluburun” here: https://www.archaeological.org/uncovering/

You can also support INA's mission via the link below:
https://support.nauticalarch.org/give

06/22/2026

The 2nd International Mustafa V. Koç Underwater Archaeology Symposium, organized by the Turkish Foundation for Underwater Archaeology (TINA), was held in Istanbul on June 18–19, bringing together researchers, students, and cultural heritage professionals from around the world.

The symposium program included contributions from several INA scholars and projects. INA Vice President Cemal Pulak and Bodrum Research Center Director Tuba Ekmekçi Littlefield chaired scientific sessions, while INA President Deborah Carlson contributed to the closing remarks.

INA Archaeologist Orkan Köyağasıoğlu presented the results of renewed excavations at the Hellenistic Shipwreck at Serçe Limanı, INA's current field project in Türkiye. INA Research Associate Carlos de Juan Fuertes shared updates from the Mazarrón 2 Project in Spain, while INA Affiliated Scholars Kroum Batchvarov discussed the Urdoviza Shipwreck in Bulgaria and Justin Leidwanger the Marzamemi Shipwreck in Sicily.

Bringing together participants from Bulgaria, Croatia, France, Greece, Malaysia, Spain, Türkiye, Ukraine, and the United States, the symposium provided a superb opportunity to exchange ideas, share new research, and strengthen international connections across the field of maritime archaeology. INA offers our thanks and congratulations to TINA and all those who came together to honor the life and legacy of Mustafa Koç.

Photos by Zeynep Hasırcıoğlu © Institute of Nautical Archaeology (INA)

04/15/2026

Check out the Maine State Museum's Lunder Education Center's upcoming interactive display about Defence! Defence was a Revolutionary War privateer that was built in 1779 but was unfortunately scuttled to keep the ship out of British hands.

View the teaser trailer for Defence's upcoming interactive display on YouTube here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3GD6uxhdC5s&t=106s

The museum is currently closed for renovations and will reopen on October 24, 2026.

You can read more about Defence on INA's website here: https://nauticalarch.org/projects/revolutionary-war-privateer-defence-excavation/

Maine State Museum curator of archaeological collections, Dr. Andrew Beaupre, talks about what he is most looking forward to when the museum reopens in 2026.