Bass, George

Bass, George (Fletcher) (1932–  ) nautical archaeologist; born in Columbia, S.C. He was a pioneer in the field of underwater archaeology, especially known for his work on ancient shipwrecks off the Turkish coast (1960–87). He won the Gold Medal of the Archaeological Institute of America in 1986; his publications include Archaeology Beneath the Sea (1976) and Ships and Shipwrecks of the Americas (1988). He taught at Texas A&M University (1976) and after founding the Institute of Nautical Archaeology (1972) served as its president (1973–82).