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Regulating Jolly Roger: The Existing And Developing Law Governing The Classification Of Underwater Cultural Heritage As "Pirate-Flagged", Peter Hershey

University of Massachusetts Law Review

This article explores the existing law governing Underwater Cultural Heritage (UCH) which is classified as “pirate-flagged.” First, this article discusses the discovery of the Whydah Galley, an 18th century slave trader vessel, which was captured by pirate Captain Samuel Bellamy and transformed into the flagship of his pirate fleet, and the subsequent discoveries of additional “pirate-flagged” shipwrecks, including the international regulatory scheme governing ownership of the property on these sunken vessels. This article discusses both 20th century international conventions which define piracy and historic case law which clarifies these definitions. Then, the article analyzes both the early American and contemporary …