Gallipoli Survey Makes Progress

Media release

Ministry for Culture and Heritage

29 October
Gallipoli Survey Makes Progress
The fourth field session of the Joint Historical and Archaeological Survey of the Anzac Battlefield made good progress, according to New Zealand’s representative. Dr Ian McGibbon has just returned from nearly a month on the Gallipoli peninsula, during which he worked with Australian and Turkish archaeologists, historians and researchers on the tri-nation project.

The outcome of an agreement between the prime ministers of the three countries in 2005, the survey has now completed four field sessions. These have covered most of the so-called Anzac Area, which encompasses the battlefield on which New Zealand and Australian (as well as British and Indian) troops fought from April to August 1915.

‘While most of the fourth session was spent in the vicinity of Lone Pine Cemetery, we were able to spend time at two important areas from a New Zealand viewpoint --- Quinn’s Post and No 3 Outpost’, says Dr McGibbon. ‘At Quinn’s we located and recorded vestiges of five more of the Malone Terraces created by Wellington Battalion commander Lieutenant-Colonel William Malone, to go with the one found in the second session. At No 3 Outpost we found a significant cache of old tools and shells’.

During the fourth session 5000 metres of Turkish and Anzac trenches were recorded, ground penetrating radar located a number of tunnels and 408 relics were found, of which 46 were deposited in the naval museum in Çanakkale.

Considerable progress was made on two spin-offs from the survey --- an illustrated book and an exhibition.

ENDS

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