Objects may not necessarily be "out of context" underwater. They may be part of a ship wreck, or a site that was once above water (think towns flooded by dams). There is also a question of ownership. What are the laws of abandoned property? Also, at least in the Great Lakes that I'm familiar with, objects found underwater may be the property of the state. I know Michigan, Wisconsin, and I believe Illinois, have laws about objects found in their "territorial waters" considered the property of the state. There was a major lawsuit about this in Illinois about the shipwreck Lady Elgin a few years ago. Harry Klinkhamer Program Officer American Association for State and Local History 1717 Church St. Nashville, TN 37203-2991 615-320-3203 FAX: 615-327-9013 [log in to unmask] Visit our new Web site, www.aaslh.org ----- Original Message ----- From: "Felicia Pickering" <[log in to unmask]> To: <[log in to unmask]> Sent: Monday, April 28, 2003 3:02 PM Subject: Re: [MUSEUM-L] treasure hunting [student question] > You might want to ask your question on Sub-Arch, the Underwater Archaeology > Discussion List. I don't have the list address but you should be able to > find it through google. > > > > -----Original Message----- > From: eireland [mailto:[log in to unmask]] > Sent: Monday, April 28, 2003 2:54 PM > To: [log in to unmask] > Subject: treasure hunting [student question] > > > A friend of mine, a diver, recently approached me about off shore treasure > diving in Florida. Usually as someone in archeaology, I am opposed to > untrained > treasure hunting because it destroys historical context, but I am not sure > how > to feel about this. Isn't it already out of its historical context if it is > on > the bottom of the sea? Does anyone know if objects found in this manner > are > accepted by museums? > > ========================================================= > Important Subscriber Information: > > The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). > > If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes). > ========================================================= Important Subscriber Information: The Museum-L FAQ file is located at http://www.finalchapter.com/museum-l-faq/ . You may obtain detailed information about the listserv commands by sending a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "help" (without the quotes). If you decide to leave Museum-L, please send a one line e-mail message to [log in to unmask] . The body of the message should read "Signoff Museum-L" (without the quotes).