Find excites Mermaid hunters
AN expedition searching for the 180-year-old wreck of the HM Colonial Schooner Mermaid believes it has been found near Cairns.
Maritime archeologist and curator Kieran Hosty who is leading an Australian National Maritime Museum expedition to find the 21m, two masted, Indian-built mapping vessel said the find was made about 4pm Sunday.
The age and type of wreckage fits with what was expected to be discovered on the Mermaid.
"It is an old wreck and we have found anchor chain, copper fastenings, pulley sheaves and rigging components," he said.
"It is hard to call at the moment but the wreck is from the 1800s.
"The crew are very excited and morale is very high, especially in regard to this find."
Mr Hosty said it was too early to make a positive identification but he expected to know within days if the wreck site held the historic remains of the Mermaid.
The vessel ran aground off the Frankland Islands, 40km southeast of Cairns, and sank while on a voyage from Sydney to the Northern Territory in 1829.
Her demise is shrouded in mystery but it is believed the sinking of the government vessel was the fault of Captain Samuel Nolbrow who chose to take a different unplanned and uncharted route through the Reef.
For the crew of 28 scientists on two dive boats the expedition had already got off to a good start after they found a different historic wreck after leaving Cairns on Thursday night.
Mr Hosty said the unknown vessel, about 20m long was found scattered over a wide area of Flora Reef, and appeared to date from about the 1930s based on a rubber sealed compass that had been found.
"It is possibly a two masted yacht," he said.
"It might be an historic wreck as it could be more than 75-years-old."
Both vessels were found by using magnetometers, which Mr Hosty described as "basically a huge underwater metal detector".
Mr Hosty said finding the wrecks, including the one he would not rule out as being the Mermaid, had been assisted by previous expedition work carried out in 2004 that narrowed down the area needed to be searched.
"That has been very, very helpful," he said.
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Is this it?: A diver looks over what could be the wreck of the Mermaid which sank off the Frankland Islands in 1829.
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