Public evening conference Amazing History under Water

This evening conference on submerged archaeological sites will join three of the most reputed underwater archaeologists worldwide. They will relate their experience of astounding historic places under water. They will give their accounts of ancient sunken wrecks of Kublai Khan, destroyed by the
legendary Kamikaze wind, of sunken cities and prehistoric landscapes now covered by the water and of the famed luxury liner Titanic, which’s sinking will have its 100th anniversary next year.

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The Centenary of the Titanic – descending to a famous gravesite
James Delgado, National Oceanographic and Atmospheric Administration, USA

The legendary luxury liner Titanic sank in 1912 after hitting an iceberg. Since then the Titanic catastrophe has inspired many films and books. The remains of the ship were sought in vain over many years and were not located until 1985. Much happened with the Titanic wreck since its discovery including artefact salvage, filming, research and international efforts for preservation. The Titanic will have the 100th anniversary of its sinking on 14 April 2012.

Sunken cities and prehistoric landscapes under the sea
Nicolas Flemming, National Oceanography Centre, Southampton, UK

More than150 sunken cities are located on the shores of the Mediterranean alone. Some of them are in size as big as Pompeii and some are up to 5,000 years old. There are however also many much older sites, like the traces of humans left on 12,000 year old Doggerland, the enigmatic country which once linked the English coast with a stretch of Continental Europe from Denmark to Normandy, but which now lies beneath the North Sea.
Recent discoveries show that even pre-humans lived on the floor of the North Sea and abandoned their stone tools there more than 300,000 years ago.

Finding Kublai Khan’s lost fleet
Kenzo Hayashida, Asian Research Institute of Underwater Archaeology, Japan

Kublai Khan was the fifth Great Khan of the Mongol Empire from 1260 to 1294 and the founder of the Yuan Dynasty in China. In the spring of 1281, he sent two separate fleets to conquer Japan; an impressive force of 900 ships containing 40,000 Korean, Chinese, and Mongol troops set out from Masan, while an even larger force of 100,000 sailed from southern China in 3,500 ships. The now-famous kamikaze, a massive typhoon, destroyed much of the fleet. This story was long thought to be a legend, but now a wreck from one of these fleets was discovered close to the coast of Japan.

The conference will start at 19.00.
Metro 5: stops Pétillon/Delta or train station Etterbeek.

The conference will be held in English language. Entry is free.