Marine Archaeology

CIfA Marine Archaeology Group logo
Join this group

Membership is free to all CIfA members! Visit your Member Area (login required) and choose the 'My Groups' option or update your choices when you renew your membership each year in April.

Those who are not CIfA members can join any group by becoming a Group Supporter for an annual fee of £15. To become a Group Supporter use the Group Supporter application form. For more information about the benefits of joining any CIfA Groups view the Groups home page.

Committee
Chair
Mark James
Secretary
Stephanie Said
Vice-chair
Alison James
Committee member
Christian Dalton
Committee member
Hefin Meara
Committee member
Terry Newman
Committee member
George Stewart-Phillips
Committee member
Laura Tidbury
Committee member
Jasmin Folland
Advisor
Victoria Boothby
Advisor
Iro' B. Camici
Specialist competence matrix

No matrix available.

Three year plan

The group provides a forum for practicing marine archaeologists and advises CIfA Advisory Council on issues relevant to underwater sites, intertidal and nautical archaeology.

MASIG aims to

  • promote the advancement of marine archaeological practice and individual professional development
  • promote greater understanding of marine archaeology within the wider archaeological community through the publication of technical papers and guidance documents
  • organise seminars and conferences to act as a forum for the development and maintenance of good practice in matters relating to marine archaeology.

Join the committee

This year, three of our committee are coming to the end of their 6 year terms with us, meaning we have vacancies for:

  • Secretary
  • Vice-chair
  • Ordinary committee member

We are interested in hearing from anyone who has experience with issues relevant to underwater sites, intertidal and nautical archaeology and wants to help us drive the specialism forward. You don't need to have experience on a committee, just a desire to get involved and enthusiasm to shape the next steps for the Group.

To be an ordinary committee member you must be member of CIfA at (PCIfA, ACIfA, MCIfA, Student or Affiliate), and the Secretary and Vice-chair roles are suitable for anyone who is a member of CIfA at PCIfA, ACIfA or MCIfA.

As a Group we meet online about 4 times per year, normally on a Tuesday at mid-morning, although this is subject to change based on committee member availability. We also  carry out additional tasks independently throughout the remainder of the time. The roles are estimated to require about 3 hours per month for the OCM position, and about 3-5 hours per month for the Secretary and Vice-chair positions. This fluctuates depending on our activities throughout the year.

To view a snapshot of the activities carried out by each committee member, the committee roles and responsibilities infographic can be found here. The deadline to express your interest in joining the committee is Friday 28 November

Either complete this form or email groups@archaeologists.net for more information about what is involved.

Group publications and newsletters

Offshore Development: Creating a Legacy for Marine Archaeology by Vic Cooper for MASIG, November 2019
A short document with notes of MASIG's session at the 2019 CIfA conference, detailing the outcomes of the session and each of the papers. 

Bridging the Gap in Maritime Archaeology: Working with Professional and Public Communities
Edited by Katy Bell this marks the publication of a conference session held at CIfA 2014 organised by the Marine Archaeology Special Interest Group. The session focused on ways in which it is possible, given the obvious constraints of working in the marine environment, to engage with a wider audience in the course of maritime archaeological work. The volume presents a series of case studies exhibiting best practice with regard to individual maritime projects and examples of outreach to local communities, including the creation of accessibility to remote and hard-to-reach archaeological sites. You can download it for free or buy a hard copy via the link below.

Slipping Through the Net: Marine Archaeological Archives in Policy and Practice
Maritime archaeological archives currently face a bleak future. There are few, if any, public repositories with the remit or capacity to collect from the marine zone, a lack of clarity over roles and responsibilities and a tendency for those collections which are not split or sold to remain uncurated and inaccessible. Marine Archaeology Group (then Maritime Affairs Group) have produced 'Slipping Through the Net: Marine Archaeological Archives in Policy and Practice' (Ransley & Satchell) which examines the current state of maritime archives and highlights principle issues which must be addressed to ensure a more positive future. 'Slipping Through the Net' was put out to consultation. This version of the document includes revisions following consultation.

Events

Event date