This project undertook an assessment survey of Ottoman-period maritime archaeology in Lebanon. It constitutes one section of a larger regional study investigating the coastal archaeology of the Eastern Mediterranean and Red Sea from 1500-1850. There is an increasing level of research being undertaken on Bronze Age and Classical period sites across this region but little work has been conducted on the archaeology of later periods.

This initial section of the broader project undertook coastal archaeological survey at a number of landscapes centred on the historic ports and maritime hinterlands of sections of the Lebanese coast recording medieval and Ottoman period archaeology and coastal architecture. An analysis of museum collections was also conducted to assess the coastal histories and material culture of this period.

The project adopted an integrated approach and includes an assessment of the physical coastal processes affecting the maritime cultural resource of this area. It is anticipated that our findings will contribute to the development of broader understandings of maritime societies during this period and help to plan and develop better strategies for the protection, management and interpretation of this resource.

The Mamluk/ Ottoman-period Maritime Cultural Landscape of Lebanon – Report 2014