Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Prisoners or slaves? New row over wreck's bones

For a decade the curious case of the Rapparee Cove bones has caused diplomatic tension and fierce academic argument.

Found during an archaeological dig on the rocky coast of north Devon, the discovery of the remains seemed to confirm that a boatload of slaves was shipwrecked off the British coast and the survivors possibly sold on.

Ten years on, a row over the bones has reignited with one historian criticising a former colleague for not publishing the results of tests on the remains and a notable black campaigner claiming that the dearth of information on the bones showed a lack of respect for the black people who died on board the ship.