Sound of Mull Archaeological Project 'SOMAP'

Cunning tip - if you want to skip the text because you can't wait to find out what projects we've been up to , click here!

The Sound of Mull is one of the UK's leading wreck diving locations. Dive tourism is vital to the economy of the Oban and Mull area bringing in millions of pounds of revenue annually. The main attraction which draws divers from all round the UK are the areas shipwrecks, set amidst stunning scenery and sheltered, clear, (but cold!), diving conditions. However, the shipwrecks are deteriorating. This is a result of environmental factors as well as manmade pressures arising from the dive tourism industry, and possibly, other commercial pressures such as scallop dredging, fish farming, and angling.

At least two of the wrecks in the Sound of Mull are of national historic importance. The Swan and the Dartmouth date to the 17th Century, and are designated under the Protection of Wrecks Act, 1973. Other sites are of regional importance. The rest are of local importance.

SOMAP was the brainchild of Martin Dean, of the Archaeological Diving Unit (ADU). It started as a one off fieldschool in 1994, teaching the techniques of nautical archaeology to sport divers. The first fieldschool was run in association with NAS Training. Since then, Lochaline Dive Centre has continued the work begun in 1994 and has involved NAS Training course participants in surveys of a number of sites in the Sound of Mull.

Objectives of SOMAP

SOMAP represents an opportunity to record the underwater heritage of the Sound of Mull and to promote the importance of conserving this resource to the many visiting divers who enjoy the area.

SOMAP's principal objectives are:

• to catalogue the ship losses, known wrecks, scattered finds, and historical         information related to the underwater heritage of the Sound of Mull
• to undertake surveys of selected shipwrecks for the purposes of archaeological research, and to enable monitoring of the condition of these wrecks in the future.
• to fulfill the role of licensee (local guardian) with respect of the designated shipwrecks of the Swan and Dartmouth. The most obvious aspect of this work is the operation of the visitor scheme on each wreck
• to promote the importance of conserving the underwater heritage to visiting divers and to local business interests.

Scallastle Bay - Find out about the recording of a group of enigmatic guns on a flat sandy seabed. There's no shipwreck to be found.....so far....

John Preston - This 19th Century  Slate schooner has been our main recording objective since 1994. Find out how far this work has come in 7 years; underwater archaeology is not as easy as it looks!

HMS Dartmouth - As part of our licensees work, we have carried out a resurvey of the large iron features of this 17th Century warship. We were keen to find out whether some of the guns had been removed.

Wreckmap SS Thesis- This scenic 19th Century wreck is a very popular dive; the ship is also an interesting one. SOMAP has been conducting diver based surveys to set up baseline data on this wreck to improve existing interpretation plans and to enable monitoring of the condition of this wreck in the future...Find out more...Or, find out about the NAS Wreckmap project here

Remote sensing searches - SOMAP has been searching for new sites, and using remote sensing techniques such as side scan sonar to record some of the larger shipwrecks! Have a look at some of the results.

Swan and HMS Dartmouth Visitor Schemes - SOMAP is committed to facilitating public access to historic shipwrecks. Find out about this pioneering scheme enabling you to dive on these two 17th Century shipwrecks.