Heritage Malta is livestreaming a masterclass about maritime archaeology in Malta in the 21st century.

The masterclass will be delivered by Timmy Gambin, who heads the agency’s Underwater Cultural Heritage Unit.

Entitled Underwater Archaeological Sites’, the masterclass will discuss maritime archaeology beyond shipwrecks and aircraft crash sites, delving into emerging opportunities and new challenges in this field. It will also cover the innovative system Malta has implemented so as to ensure that the islands’ submerged cultural heritage is shared with the public, both locally and globally.

The invention of the aqualung in the middle of the 20th century opened up the underwater world. People were able to descend and explore the depth to make exciting discoveries about marine flora and fauna as well as previously unknown shipwrecks. It was not long after the invention of the aqualung that the nascent discipline of maritime archaeology started to take root in Malta. Since its humble and sporadic beginnings in the late 1950s, this sub-discipline of archaeology has grown into a key part of the local heritage set-up.

The masterclass, to be streamed live on Facebook tomorrow, June 24, at 6.30pm, will be delivered in Maltese and will include a Q&A session. Participants who would like to put their questions to Gambin need to register beforehand via this link: https://zoom.us/webinar/register/WN_qjtM6J_2RFCsiDo9dIt4CQ.