diving for artifacts

[Gabriel90512]

how does the dive community feel about diving ship wrecks
and taking artifacts.

are some things ok to take and some not ?

should all wrecks be looked at but noting taken ...

wanted to know how most of you feel

Gabe

 

[mania]

You can find some answers here if you have a lot of time - this thread is already 20 something pages long

http://www.scubaboard.com/showthread.php?t=64660&page=1&pp=10

Mania

 

[RIOceanographer]

Well, without getting into the whole ethical debate about it.... the local New England Laws are pretty specific on the subject. In Rhode Island any object submerged for more than 10 years is considered state property and may not be recovered without explicit permission from the state board of archeology (or what ever the exact term for the office is).

In MA the rules are a little more complex but in some ways less strict. Some wrecks are protected from artifact salvage by law without permission, others wrecks are considered exempt. If you want a detailed list of the exempt ships and all the MA rules go to http://www.mass.gov/czm/BUAR.HTM