Reuniting orphaned cargoes: Shared heritage of the Maritime Silk Route (ARC Linkage Project administered by Flinders University) (2022–2026)
Abstract:
Beginning in the mid 1400s the Maritime Silk Route witnessed the largest known expansion of global trade. But
the legacy of artefacts retrieved from this time has not been appropriately understood because the objects were
mostly salvaged and dispersed without recording the archaeological details of their find-spots. Our multilateral
consortium aims to discover the cultural value of the largest Southeast Asian ceramic collections in Indonesia and
Australia with archaeological science. By employing and enhancing international conventions, the project will
generate new knowledge about this decisive epoch in world history and build capacity to preserve the underwater
cultural heritage of our region for future generations.