EXPEDITIONS

Expedition Background
The reefs and islands of the Campeche Bank were a notorious navigation hazard for Spanish ships traveling between Havana and the Mexican port of Veracruz, the latter of which was established by Cortez in preparation for his assault on the Aztec capital. It was among these shoals and hidden reefs that all 19 ships of the New Spain Fleet, under the command of Admiral Manuel Serrano, foundered and sank during a storm in 1631. Due to the threat posed by the reefs and islands of the Campeche Bank, the names and approximate locations of these ships appear on the earliest maps of the New World; yet they are among the least explored areas within the Gulf of Mexico.
                                                                                                                            
Over the past several years, Dr. Pilar Luna Erreguerena has carried out research regarding the New Spain Fleet in the archives of Spain, Cuba, and Mexico. She and her team from the National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) have identified 24 sites and recorded 150 targets along the Campeche Bank, the majority of which still await inspection. The treasure galleon Nuestra Señora del Juncal remains elusive.

Helena Barba (L) and Mike Dessner (R) survey the sea floor at Chinchorro Bank

Expedition Summary
The Waitt Institute for Discovery partnered with Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) for this exploratory survey of Campeche and Chinchorro Banks.  Leading the expedition as Principle Investigator was Dr. Pilar Luna, a nautical archaeologist and Director of Underwater Archaeology at INAH in Mexico City.  

The first focus of the 18-day expedition was survey efforts on the search for the lost New Spain Fleet of 1630-1631 and its flagship, the Nuestra Señora del Juncal. The secondary phase of the expedition was to investigate shipwrecks and suspected shipwreck sites at Alacran Reef and along the reefs of Chinchorro Bank. These locations are remote and many of the reef areas are unspoiled.

Expedition Team Members
Dr. Pilar Luna Erreguerena/Principle Investigator
Director of Underwater Archaeology, National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH)

Dominique Rissolo, PhD/ Expedition Coordinator
Executive Director, Waitt Institute for Discovery

Joe Lepore/Dive Safety Officer, Surveyor
Dive Safety Officer, Waitt Institute for Discovery

Mike Dessner/Logistics Coordinator, Surveyor
Director of Logistics, Waitt Institute for Discovery

Jeff Morris/Director of Survey Operations
Director, Azulmar Research, LLC

Steve Bilicki/Surveyor
Maritime Archaeologist, Azulmar Research, LLC

Helena Barba Meinecke/Surveyor
Underwater Archaeologist, National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) <www.inah.gob.mx>

Roberto Junco Sánchez/Surveyor
Underwater Archaeologist, National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH)

Edgar Merino Gallegos/Surveyor
Underwater Archaeologist, National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH)

Admiral Alberto Mariano Vázquez De la Cerda/Physical Oceanographer
Professor, University of Veracruz

Michael Jablonowski/Surveyor
Sonoma State University

Lance Milbrand/Videographer
Director, Milbrand Cinema

In Collaboration With

Principle Investigator

Dr. Pilar Luna Erreguerena
Director of Underwater Archaeology, National Institute of Anthropology and History (INAH) Mexico City, Mexico

Other WID Expeditions