The SPLASH (Submerged Prehistoric Archaeology and Landscapes of the Continental Shelf) project, was an EU-funded COST (Co-operation in Science and Technology) Action. It ran from 2009 – 2013 and developed a network of research collaboration, bringing together archaeologists, marine geophysicists, environmental scientists and commercial and industrial organisations operating on the seabed. Over 150 individuals from 27 EU Member States were involved. MAT are proud to have been part of this network, helping deliver Work Package activities and contributing to the project outputs. 

The main project objectives were to promote research on the investigation, interpretation and management of the drowned landscapes and prehistoric archaeology of the European continental shelf, which form a major but hidden part of the European cultural heritage, to create a structure for the development of new interdisciplinary and international research proposals, and to provide guidance to heritage professionals, government agencies, commercial organisations, policy makers and a wider public on the relevance of underwater research to European history, and to the understanding of sea level change and its social relevance and likely future impact.

The formal programme of activities, outputs and publications is now complete. The project outputs include: 

An online viewer, which is an interactive database of submerged prehistoric sites and finds can be accessed online.

Two major publication volumes: 

The Archaeology of Europe’s Drowned Landscapes (2020), published by Springer as an open access volume. You can download the volume from here.

Submerged Landscape of the European Continental Shelf: Quaternary Palaeoenvironments (2017), published by Wiley-Blackwell. Further details are available here.

For more information on the project, visit SPLASHCOS.org