Studland Bay Wreck Conservation Statement and Management Plan
Authors: Cousins, T.
Publisher: Historic England
Abstract:The Studland Bay wreck is that of an Iberian merchant ship lost in Poole Bay in the early 16th Century. The Studland Bay wreck was discovered January 1984 when fishing gear snagged on an unidentified seabed obstruction was investigated by divers revealing a large timber structure with ceramic fragments visible in the sand covering it. A large scale excavation and recording exercise took place between 1984 and 1992 revealing the keel section of the vessel and a third area consisting of a scattering of artefacts and large breech loading guns.
At the end of 1992 the site was reburied and since that time it has been bi-annually monitored by the Poole Bay Archaeological Research Group led by Mike Markey. These dives confirmed the safety of the site and showed that the strategies for its protection were effective, apart from occasional evidence that anglers’ hooks had caused a slight degree of disturbance. The site was reassessed in 2016 by Bournemouth University which showed that the main areas of the wreck remain buried with the exception of the concretions in Area 3 and localised scour around them revealing some small timbers.
The site was designated under the Protection of the Wrecks Act (1973) as the Studland Bay Wreck in on 1984. The current designation extends for a radius of 75m from the position: 50°39.69’N 001°54.87'W (WGS84).
This Conservation Statement and Management Plan has been produced to enable local, regional and national stakeholder involvement in Historic England’s aspirations for the conservation management of the Studland Bay to balance conservation with economic and social needs. The principle aim of this plan is to identify a shared vision of how the values and features of the Studland Bay Wreck can be conserved, maintained and enhanced.
Source: Manual