Virgin territory Exploring old sunken ships is considered one of the most important aspects of a new field of study created in the 20th century: undersea archaeology. Salvage work has been carried on in the West for many years now. Among the great success stories have been recoveries of ancient Greek and Roman ships, of one of the fast frigates Columbus used on his voyage to America, and of a 17th century Spanish man-of-war.
找尋古沉船被認為是廿世紀新興學科﹘﹘水底考古的重要一環，在西方已經行之有年，目前已成功地挖掘了古希臘、羅馬時代的古船，哥倫布發現新大陸戰艦，十七世紀西班牙戰艦等古船。