Under the guidance of the Head of the Department, Prof. Karunasena Hettiarachchi, the Department of History and Archaeology, USJ offered an Underwater Archaeology training program for the 3rd year Archaeology (Honours) degree students, from the 4th of July – 11th of July 2023, at the Maritime Archaeology Unit (MAU) of the Central Cultural Fund in Galle.
The undergraduates successfully managed to acquire field experience on the theoretical knowledge they learned in the classroom, such as Underwater Archaeology excavations, Underwater Archaeological explorations, Legislations and Conventions on Underwater Archaeology, Maritime Archaeology in Sri Lankan context (North-western coast, West Coast, East Cost, South Coast), Underwater Cultural Heritage Management, Diving Equipment, Artifact & In-situ Conservation, Underwater Photography, etc.
The Department of History and Archaeology would like to thank the Acting Vice-Chancellor of the USJ, Prof. Upul Subasinghe, and the Dean of the FHSS, Prof. Shirantha Heenkenda, for making the necessary arrangements to realize this training program. Furthermore, the Department expresses its gratitude to the Director-General of the Central Cultural Fund of Sri Lanka, Prof. Gamini Ranasinghe, for allowing this training program and the Officer-in-charge of the MAU in Galle, Mr. W.M. Chandraratna, Mr. Rasika Muthucumarana (Senior Archaeology Officer) and their staff for executing this training program, taking care of our students and tirelessly offering them with relevant practical knowledge.