The Raising of the Mary Rose
The Recovery and Preservation of Henry VIII’s Favourite Ship
Oct 13, 2008
Built between 1509 and 1511, the Mary Rose sank in the Solent during battle with the French in 1545. Lost until the 20th century, her rediscovery and recovery were revolutionary events in the history of maritime archaeology.
The Rediscovery of the Mary Rose
The wreck of the Mary Rose was first rediscovered in 1836 by a local fisherman. Divers subsequently investigated the wreck and recovered a number of iron and bronze guns and some of the ships timbers. But they did not recognise the ship as the Mary Rose and it was soon forgotten.
In 1967, Lex McKee used side scan sonar to investigate the area pinpointed as the site of the Mary Rose’s sinking. A 200 foot-long oval anomaly was discovered on the sea bed. McKee was convinced he had found the Tudor warship but further exploration was required to confirm this. Preliminary excavations using water jets and airlifts removed silt from the area. The ship was exposed. She had sunk, falling on her starboard side which was preserved in the silt of the Solent. The exposed port side was eroded and decayed. However, much of the ships interior, including passage ways, cabins and ancillary structures remained intact.
Excavation of the Wreck
Full scale excavation began in 1979. With a salvage vessel positioned above the wreck as a base, divers were able to excavate in shifts while finds were sorted on board.
In order to record and map the site, a bright yellow grid was suspended in the water over the wreck. Excavators worked with trowels and their hands to move sediment away from the area they were working on whilst airlifts were used to remove large volumes of silt. The site was photographed and video footage used to give detailed frame by frame visuals of the wreck. Recording of the site was completed on the salvage ship with detailed reports and drawings completed as soon as the excavators returned to the surface.
Surveying the ship was difficult because of the amount hidden in sediment or detached from the main body of the vessel. The Direct Survey Measurement system or DSM was developed as a result of this. The main body of the ship was measured at four fixed points which were then converted into coordinates acting as reference points. In this way, the whole structure could be measure relating back to these coordinates, allowing the creation of a 3D model of the overall structure.
Raising the Mary Rose
Raising the ship involved the most innovative techniques of all. The ship was wired to a frame specially designed to lift it from the sea bed. Hydraulic jacks set in the legs of the frame raised the hull until it was just out of the silt. The frame was then raised by a crane onboard a ship which lowered the remains of the hull into a cradle specially designed using the survey results. The frame and cradle then snapped together to protect the ship and allow it to be lifted safely to the surface.
Conservation
The ship was then wrapped in foam and polythene to protect it was it was moved to Portsmouth naval base. She was turned upright and kept wet under a sprinkler system to prevent the wood from drying out and fungi from developing. The ship was cleaned and interior timbers removed during excavation were replaced.
In the early ‘90s, the chilled water was replaced by a solution of Polyethylene Glycol (PEG) a wax that gradually replaced water in the timbers. A more concentrated application has been in use since 2004, Coating and sealing the timbers. By 2009, the process of conservation will be complete and spraying will no longer be required.
The Finds
About 20,000 artefacts were found in the wreckage of the Mary Rose as well asthe remains of around 200 members of her crew.The survival of so many everyday items in situ has offered archaeologists a unique insight into day to day Tudor life
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