Dianna Zwart

Causes of Shipwrecks: Identifying the Causes of Shipwreck Through the Archaeological Record Dianna Zwart

Watercraft are and have always been used for transportation of goods and people. Although ships have changed much over time, there is always one danger they all encounter and that is the danger of being wrecked. It is interesting that although this is a reoccurring problem little research has been conducted in this area. Today the causes of shipwrecks are thoroughly investigated, but it is also possible to learn from the past. In the maritime archaeology field it is recognised that there is a gap in the knowledge of causes of shipwrecks and the human behaviours involved in this. This research gave an insight into how to look at the causes from a different perspective, the pre- impact decision making per-spective. Human decision- making and risk assessment are two ways that archaeologists can investigate the causes of wrecking from a human perspective.