But like most legends, this one mixes a sprinkling of fact with a hefty dose of fiction. Usually held at a pre-determined neutral site, this year marks the first time that one of the teams will play for the title on its home turf.įor generations, the allure of the buccaneer and José Gaspar’s legend have inspired a broad range of namesakes in Tampa, from the football team to a music festival, an independent film festival and a half marathon. But Tampa residents still have reason to celebrate: On February 7, their NFL team, the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, will go up against the Kansas City Chiefs in Tampa’s Raymond James Stadium for the 55th annual Super Bowl. Many of this year’s Gasparilla festivities were postponed due to the Covid-19 pandemic. José Gasparilla, the legendary pirate who supposedly terrorized his way up and down the west Floridian coast in the late 18th century. The Krewe estimates that nearly 300,000 people, locals and tourists alike, parade and party along Tampa’s streets each year to celebrate José Gaspar-a.k.a. They belong to Ye Mystic Krewe of Gasparilla, a once-segregated quasi-fraternity that dates to 1904 and puts on the Gasparilla festival each year, with help from sponsors like Bud Light and Captain Morgan rum. It’s an act, of course: Many of the people initiating the action, dressed like characters straight out of Pirates of the Caribbean, are members of the Florida city’s elite. A crew of swaggering, swashbuckling bandits in eye-patches and tricorns accost the mayor and demand the keys to the city. Hundreds of boats swarm the city harbor, led by a 165-foot-long, fully rigged pirate ship. He is also the author of Captain Kidd's Lost Ship: The Wreck of the Quedagh Merchant, co-author of The Maritime Landscape of the Isthmus of Panamá, and a contributing author to Pieces of Eight: More Archaeology of Piracy.Most years, as January draws to a close, pirates invade Tampa. ![]() ![]() He has been featured widely in the press and media, including documentaries and programs on the National Geographic Channel, the Sundance Channel, the Travel Channel, and the South by Southwest Film Festival. He is a technical, cave, and closed-circuit rebreather (CCR) diver, a certified SCUBA instructor, a Nautical Archaeology Society tutor, and a Fellow of the Explorer's Club. ![]() In a broader sense, archaeology is a science that allows us to interact with our past and, hopefully, informs our future.įritz Hanselmann has almost 20 years of experience with all aspects of underwater archaeological field operations and has directed numerous projects in Latin America, the Caribbean, and North America. Through comparative analysis of the archaeological and historical records coupled with ocean exploration, we can get a glimpse into the reality of what a pirate’s life truly meant and how underwater archaeological sites still live on in the modern day as marine protected areas. Hanselmann to learn about the search for and research into sunken pirate fleets in the Caribbean. Captain Henry Morgan and Captain William Kidd are two of the most famous pirates of all time. In fact, finding a site and making the connection to piracy is a difficult assertion and sometimes controversial. What do we really know about pirates and what is fact and what is fiction? Little specific evidence of pirates and their actions exists in the archaeological record and, oftentimes, it is difficult to distinguish the identification and function of certain sites, features, and artifacts from being piratical or simply commonplace. One of the most romanticized aspects of history is that of pirates. Real Pirates of the Caribbean: The Search for and Study of Shipwrecks from Captain Morgan and Captain Kidd This lecture is also being offered virtually via Zoom.ĭirector of the Underwater Archaeology Program and the Scientific Diving and Boating Program at the UM Rosenstiel School of Marine, Atmospheric, and Earth Science ![]() The lecture will begin promptly at 7:00 PM in the Rosenstiel auditorium. This lecture will have a complimentary reception at SALT Waterfront Restaurant on the Rosenstiel Campus, beginning at 6:30 PM.
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