Research and Project Development

Exhaustive and meticulous research is essential to identifying viable shipwreck targets and is the foundation for all of Odyssey’s shipwreck projects. 

Odyssey supports a team of professional researchers, including an in-house staff whose full-time occupation is researching multiple shipwreck projects using our extensive internal library and network of resources. Odyssey also seeks out and maintains relationships with many of the world's top shipwreck researchers in order to investigate viable projects. These international research consultants have unique expertise in the field and ready access to libraries and archives around the world.

Data provided by these researchers is then evaluated and checked against Odyssey’s own database and resources. It is compared with information provided by other experts and then reviewed again in exhaustive detail to determine if further resources should be spent on the project. Every shipwreck project is dependent upon in-depth research which in some cases, may span several years.

Project research may focus on a particular search area, as opposed to a specific shipwreck. These projects would include areas where historical documents suggest unrecorded and recorded high value targets may rest due to the proximity of shipping routes frequented by vessels carrying rich cargoes.

Each project that targets a specific shipwreck begins with the research necessary to evaluate the potential value, location and viability of finding the wreck. Research is also necessary to establish the historical significance of the sunken ship and helps define the context in which the ship sank—essential for preparing an archaeological project plan and the complex logistics that precede excavation of a site.

Odyssey's skilled marine research department continuously conducts research in an attempt to identify shipwreck projects that meet the following criteria:

Documented Cargo Value

The research must indicate that the shipwreck was carrying enough intrinsically valuable cargo to cover the high costs associated with deep-ocean exploration and advanced archaeological recovery. Commercially viable cargo typically includes gold, silver, jewels, or other high-value items. Odyssey sometimes engages in the preliminary exploration of a shipwreck for purely scientific purposes, even if the value of the wreck is largely cultural, historical and educational.

Documented Navigation Information

The research must provide reliable navigational information documenting the sinking location (or a particular area with potential for producing high value targets) in order to minimize the search area, as well as the cost and time involved, and to provide a reasonable expectation that the shipwreck can be found. This information may derive from a multitude of sources including archival records, contemporary narratives, weather patterns, and local fishermen.

Path to Ownership

The research must resolve or reasonably predict prior to recovery any issues relating to ownership of the shipwreck and its cargo. Questions pertaining to potential claimants, the location of the wreck inside or outside territorial waters, and the nature of the ship's commercial or military mission are some of the important considerations that need to be understood in advance. As with Odyssey's previous projects, including the SS Republic and HMS Sussex, and HMS Victory. Odyssey diligently notifies potential claimants when a ship's identity is established.

Odyssey continues to develop significant credibility in the archaeological, political and historical community surrounding the excavation of its shipwreck sites. Odyssey's landmark agreement with the government of the United Kingdom for the HMS Sussex project is an example of a successful, government/private sector relationship that demonstrates confidence in Odyssey's professional, scientific, and technical expertise, and provides for a reasonably predictable path to ownership.

In some cases, other parties may have an interest or ownership claim in a shipwreck or cargo, such as an insurance company. Odyssey strives to reach agreements with legitimate claimants whenever possible. Our agreement with the insurance company that originally paid a claim on the SS Republic in the 19th century allowed Odyssey to swiftly obtain the full title and ownership to the SS Republic shipwreck.