Keeping the Lid on Davy Jones’ Locker: A Conference on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage from Titanic to Today

WASHINGTON, Oct. 31, 2011 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ — To mark the 100th anniversary of Titanic, international experts will explore the challenges facing the world’s underwater cultural heritage during a November 3 conference at the National Trust for Historic Preservation in Washington, DC. “Keeping the Lid on Davy Jones’ Locker: The Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage from Titanic to Today” will give the public an unprecedented opportunity to interact with the archaeologists, explorers, and scientists behind the most important nautical expeditions of our time. Since maritime discoveries are often hotly contested in the courts, the conference will also feature top attorneys.

“The subject of who owns or controls lost ships and sunken heritage has dominated discussion and legal cases for decades,” said James Delgado, the keynote speaker. “This conference is a unique and timely opportunity to extend the dialogue beyond the courtroom to examine the issues and hear from all parties.” Dr. Delgado — the Director of Maritime Heritage at NOAA’s Office of National Marine Sanctuaries — has led or participated in numerous shipwreck expeditions around the world, including RMS Titanic, Carpathia, and USS Arizona. He is a Fellow of both the Royal Geographical Society and the Explorers Club and has authored or edited over 32 books and numerous articles.

“Now that technology has unlocked earth’s last frontier, shipwrecks and lost cities await, promising a wealth of knowledge about ancient civilizations and other untold riches,” said Tess Davis, Executive Director of the Lawyers’ Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation, which is organizing the conference. “But they have long been at the mercy of nature and time, and now, sites once protected by the ocean depths are falling victim to plunder. We are in a race to the relics on the ocean floor — against the elements and each other — but who will prevail?”

“Keeping the Lid on Davy Jones’ Locker” seeks to answer that question. The conference is sponsored by the Lawyers’ Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation, the Penn Cultural Heritage Center, the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Continuing Legal Education (CLE) credits will be available for attorneys who attend. For the complete program and to register, visit www.culturalheritagelaw.org.

Tess Davis, Executive Director
Lawyers’ Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation (LCCHP)
+1 (202) 681-3785
director@culturalheritagelaw.org
www.culturalheritagelaw.org/2011conference

SOURCE Lawyers’ Committee for Cultural Heritage Preservation (LCCHP)