History and October Films have teamed up to explore the site of the shipwrecked vessel of Christopher Columbus, the Santa Maria.
The pair have secured exclusive access to the location of the sunken ship, thought to be off the coast of Haiti. History will sponsor the expedition which will be led by maritime investigator Barry Clifford.
For the film, Clifford will revisit the site he originally investigated in 2003 after cross-checking Columbus’ diary with photographic evidence of artefacts from the ship he secured over a decade ago.
“All the geographical, underwater topography and archaeological evidence strongly suggest that this wreck is Columbus’ famous flagship,” said Clifford. “I am confident that a full excavation of the wreck will yield the first ever detailed marine archaeological evidence of Columbus’ discovery of America.”
The Santa Maria was the vessel Columbus used to navigate the Atlantic in search of a new western route Asia during the latter period of the 15th century.
October Films creative director, Adam Bullmore, said: “History is the perfect partner for something as enormously exciting as this discovery. They were able to see the potential importance of the project and got behind it right away. Now it’s just a question of holding our nerve while the archaeological experts do their job.”
The show is one of two archaeologist specials being made by October Films. The indie is also working on Stonehenge Empire, an exploration of the famous landmark, with BBC2, Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, Smithsonian Channel, France 5, ORF Austria and ZDF Germany. A two-hour Stonehenge Empire special will air this autumn.
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