The Maritime Archaeology Trust (MAT) with support from Historic England is undertaking a project aiming to better understand the issues of equality of opportunity for women in maritime archaeology and to develop initiatives to actively improve the situation. The MAT, located in Southampton, England, is choosing to focus initially on women and organisations within the United Kingdom, with hopes to provide frameworks of analysis and investigation to the wider field as the project continues. Between 2023 and 2024, MAT conducted a project known as ‘Women and Protected Wrecks: Examining Engagement’. Protected Wrecks in UK waters are remains of ships and boats within the territorial limits of the UK that meet certain standards set by the government. These sites are discovered, licensed, and protected often by local stakeholders with the help of the governing body.
The data gathered from this project showcased unexpected outcomes, revealing persistent disparities across the field. While women make up 56% of professional maritime archaeologists, they are widely underrepresented in academia (35%), membership-based organizations (37%), leadership roles (30%), conference speakers (20%), and authorship of maritime archaeology publications (20%). Furthermore, women only represent 30% of UK divers (Figure 1). These results were sobering to the reality of female representation in the maritime archaeology field in the UK and highlighted a clear discrepancy between opportunity and workforce.
Underwater Archaeology and Maritime History jobs 