Diver Inspection

Date 6 July 2014

Event ID 1037404

Category Recording

Type Diver Inspection

Permalink http://canmore.org.uk/event/1037404

Project SAMPHIRE

John Beaton, an employee of SAMS and a contributor to SAMPHIRE 2013, provided the SAMPHIRE team with the location and description of a shipwreck in north Skye, near Ardmore Bay. According to John, the wreck is locally known as the Iris. John reported the location and coordinates as well as describing the wreck including copper sheathed hull remains, a bronze rudder gudgeon, coal, iron knees, pump, and chain pipes.

The RCAHMS database lists a reported loss of a ship called the Iris in the region, though there are conflicting contemporary newspaper accounts as to where exactly the ship sank. The Iris was a wooden brig, built in 1857 with a length of 34m, a beam of 7m and a gross tonnage of 236. It was lost with its cargo of coal in 1874 although all hands were saved. The Canmore entry for the wreck records an abortive attempt to tow it from the rocks where it had stranded, abandoned after it had stranded in deep water.

Thanks to the details that John provided us, this wreck was selected for investigation during Phase III of SAMPHIRE. The SAMPHRE team arrived on site and began a diver investigation on 6th July, 2014. Divers immediately encountered the remains of the wreck upon reaching the seafloor on the first dive. The wreck was found to be very broken up with disarticulated portions of the hull and machinery scattered across the sandy bottom and onto the adjacent submerged boulder field. Divers photo-documented the debris field and identified concentrations of material. The second dive focused on continuing the photo documentation and traditional recording of the machinery and potentially diagnostic debris. Divers identified the remains of copper sheathing, hull planking, disarticulated hull structure, iron knees, large pipes and what appears to be steam engine machinery. Though the Iris was not a steamship, the vessel could have been fitted with auxiliary steam machinery as this was common at the time. The artefacts appear to indicate a 19th century vessel, aligning with the identification of the Iris. Further research is necessary into the construction and auxiliary machinery on the Iris to match the artefacts on the seabed but it is considered to be the most likely candidate for the wreck.

SAMPHIRE ID: 45

Classification: SCHOONER (19TH CENTURY)

Site Name: Iris;

Coordinates: 123070, 859994

Accuracy: 5m