In a historic moment for the state of Wisconsin, a team of divers and archaeologists recently extracted a 1200-year-old dugout canoe from Madison’s Lake Mendota.
The canoe was carefully extracted from lake sediment 27 feet underwater. The artifact was then pulled to a beach in the city’s Spring Harbor neighborhood and greeted by ecstatic residents and historians.
Tamara Thomsen, the maritime archeologist and master scuba instructor for the Professional Association of Diving Instructors, spotted the canoe underwater back in June. “I’ve never seen this underwater (before) and I don’t think I’ll ever get to again in my career,” she said in an interview with USA Today.
The canoe discovery marks a monumental moment for Wisconsin, as it is the oldest fully intact dugout canoe in the state.
