The
Wheel Wreck is the remains of a shipwreck lying in Crow sound off Little Ganinick in the
Isles of ScillyThe Isles of Scilly form an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of the British Isles. Traditionally administered as part of the county of Cornwall, the islands have had a unitary authority council since 1889...
. The wreck site consists of a discrete mound of cargo, that appears to consist of iron wheels and pipes. It is thought to have been deposited from a ship that capsized, although the remains of the ship have not been found and a wrecked ship has not yet been identified. However, an anchor lies some 60m from the cargo.
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The
Wheel Wreck is the remains of a shipwreck lying in Crow sound off Little Ganinick in the
Isles of ScillyThe Isles of Scilly form an archipelago off the southwestern tip of the Cornish peninsula of the British Isles. Traditionally administered as part of the county of Cornwall, the islands have had a unitary authority council since 1889...
. The wreck site consists of a discrete mound of cargo, that appears to consist of iron wheels and pipes. It is thought to have been deposited from a ship that capsized, although the remains of the ship have not been found and a wrecked ship has not yet been identified. However, an anchor lies some 60m from the cargo. The wreck was discovered by local divers in 2005 and investigated by the archaeological contractor for the
Protection of Wrecks Act 1973The Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which provides protection for designated shipwrecks. Section 1 of the act provides for wrecks to be designated because of historical, archaeological or artistic value. Section 2 provides for designation of...
in 2006.
The archaeological contractor identified that the cargo consists of tin-mining equipment and is presumed to have been from a foundry in Cornwall. This archaeological identification fortuitously came just after the designation of the
Cornish tin mining areasThe Cornwall and West Devon Mining Landscape is a World Heritage Site which includes select mining landscapes across Cornwall and West Devon in the south west of the United Kingdom...
as a
World Heritage SiteA UNESCO World Heritage Site is a site that is on the list that is maintained by the international World Heritage Programme administered by the UNESCO World Heritage Committee, composed of 21 state parties which are elected by their General Assembly for a four-year term.A World Heritage Site is a...
. The cargo find is considered particularly important, because such mining equipment no longer exists on land.
The site was designated under the
Protection of Wrecks ActThe Protection of Wrecks Act 1973 is an Act of the Parliament of the United Kingdom which provides protection for designated shipwrecks. Section 1 of the act provides for wrecks to be designated because of historical, archaeological or artistic value. Section 2 provides for designation of...
on 5 April 2007.