Using Multibeam Echo-Sounder Data to Identify Shipwreck Sites: archaeological assessment of the Joint Irish Bathymetric Survey data

analysing bathymetric and backscatter data derived from multibeam surveys off the north coast of Ireland. In particular, the usability of the data for shipwreck detection, identification and site characterization is explored. In Phase 1, the data was screened for anomalous sea-bed features, which were subsequently described, catalogued and categorized according to their archaeological potential and cross-referenced against existing records. A planned second phase of this project will examine each anomaly in greater detail together with the local and regional hydrodynamic conditions. © 2010 The Authors Key words: shipwreck, Ireland, multibeam, marine sites and monuments record. The sea has played a vital role in Irelands’s cul-tural, economic and political landscape and thisis reflected in the island’s diverse maritime heri-tage. Boats and ships in particular have played a signifi-cant role in Ireland’s development, whether they were used as a means of transport and trade or as a means of making a living by harvesting the ocean’s produce. A boatbuilding tradition has been part of Irish life since the first human occupation, as early Mesolithic colo-nists must have travelled across a stretch of open wate