Marine archaeologists catch a break on the bottom of the Baltic Sea: A 75-year-old Enigma Machine
(2020/12/04)
- Reference: 1607117008
- News link: https://www.theregister.co.uk/2020/12/04/marine_archaeologists_enigma/
- Source link:
Divers clearing out a sprawl of abandoned fishing nets stuck in the Baltic Sea discovered more than they bargained for when they spotted an Enigma Machine, a device that encrypted secret messages used by the Germans in World War II.
The leftover relic is a prized possession for history buffs and cryptography geeks. Pristine machines that are still functional can [1]fetch several hundred thousand dollars . The one spotted by the divers, however, has rusted away after being submerged under water for several decades. Despite its off-color and battered appearance, the boxy hunk of metal with a few of its raised circular keys still visible is instantly recognizable.
Incredible artifact – or vital component after civilization ends? Rare Nazi Enigma M4 box sells for £350,000 [2]READ MORE
A pair of marine archaeologists from Submaris, a diving company located in Kiel, Germany, working with conservation charity the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), knew they had spotted something unusual, thanks to a sonar scan.
“The WWF has been working for many years to rid the Baltic Sea of dangerous ghost nets,” Gabriele Dederer, a consultant at WWF Germany, [3]said in a statement translated to English. “We regularly find larger objects on which the nets get tangled underwater. Such so-called "hook points" are often tree trunks or stones. However, the Enigma is by far the most exciting find we have ever had.
Das ist keine Schreibmaschine! Auf der Suche nach [4]#Geisternetze |n haben die Taucher von [5]#Submaris eine [6]#ENIGMA gefunden. Das Gerät diente im Zweiten Weltkrieg zur Verschlüsselung von Funksprüchen. Nun kommt sie ins Museum: [7]https://t.co/zQlGTwAmwV cc [8]@drhuberfloh [9]pic.twitter.com/y8cA6fWyxX — WWF Deutschland (@WWF_Deutschland) [10]December 3, 2020
The team reckons the machine was thrown overboard in 1945 by the Nazis, after the German navy scuttled its own submarines to prevent the Allies from nabbing the tech toward the end of the war. The Enigma code was cracked by British boffin Alan Turing in 1942 at Bletchley Park, an instrumental figure credited for helping the Allies win the war and for saving millions of lives.
“Should further archaeological finds come up, we would like to point out that there is a legal obligation to report, as this can be underwater cultural heritage," Dederer added. The device will be taken to the Museum of Archeology in Schleswig to be restored and preserved. ®
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[1] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/19/enigma_m4_auction/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/19/enigma_m4_auction/
[3] https://www.wwf.de/2020/dezember/sensationsfund-in-der-ostsee
[4] https://twitter.com/hashtag/Geisternetze?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[5] https://twitter.com/hashtag/Submaris?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[6] https://twitter.com/hashtag/ENIGMA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[7] https://t.co/zQlGTwAmwV
[8] https://twitter.com/drhuberfloh?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[9] https://t.co/y8cA6fWyxX
[10] https://twitter.com/WWF_Deutschland/status/1334548200158449664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
The leftover relic is a prized possession for history buffs and cryptography geeks. Pristine machines that are still functional can [1]fetch several hundred thousand dollars . The one spotted by the divers, however, has rusted away after being submerged under water for several decades. Despite its off-color and battered appearance, the boxy hunk of metal with a few of its raised circular keys still visible is instantly recognizable.
Incredible artifact – or vital component after civilization ends? Rare Nazi Enigma M4 box sells for £350,000 [2]READ MORE
A pair of marine archaeologists from Submaris, a diving company located in Kiel, Germany, working with conservation charity the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF), knew they had spotted something unusual, thanks to a sonar scan.
“The WWF has been working for many years to rid the Baltic Sea of dangerous ghost nets,” Gabriele Dederer, a consultant at WWF Germany, [3]said in a statement translated to English. “We regularly find larger objects on which the nets get tangled underwater. Such so-called "hook points" are often tree trunks or stones. However, the Enigma is by far the most exciting find we have ever had.
Das ist keine Schreibmaschine! Auf der Suche nach [4]#Geisternetze |n haben die Taucher von [5]#Submaris eine [6]#ENIGMA gefunden. Das Gerät diente im Zweiten Weltkrieg zur Verschlüsselung von Funksprüchen. Nun kommt sie ins Museum: [7]https://t.co/zQlGTwAmwV cc [8]@drhuberfloh [9]pic.twitter.com/y8cA6fWyxX — WWF Deutschland (@WWF_Deutschland) [10]December 3, 2020
The team reckons the machine was thrown overboard in 1945 by the Nazis, after the German navy scuttled its own submarines to prevent the Allies from nabbing the tech toward the end of the war. The Enigma code was cracked by British boffin Alan Turing in 1942 at Bletchley Park, an instrumental figure credited for helping the Allies win the war and for saving millions of lives.
“Should further archaeological finds come up, we would like to point out that there is a legal obligation to report, as this can be underwater cultural heritage," Dederer added. The device will be taken to the Museum of Archeology in Schleswig to be restored and preserved. ®
Get our [11]Tech Resources
[1] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/19/enigma_m4_auction/
[2] https://www.theregister.com/2020/07/19/enigma_m4_auction/
[3] https://www.wwf.de/2020/dezember/sensationsfund-in-der-ostsee
[4] https://twitter.com/hashtag/Geisternetze?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[5] https://twitter.com/hashtag/Submaris?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[6] https://twitter.com/hashtag/ENIGMA?src=hash&ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[7] https://t.co/zQlGTwAmwV
[8] https://twitter.com/drhuberfloh?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[9] https://t.co/y8cA6fWyxX
[10] https://twitter.com/WWF_Deutschland/status/1334548200158449664?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw
[11] https://whitepapers.theregister.com/
Re: Old typewriter
Yet Another Anonymous coward
>Micro biologists and molecular biologists get annoyed
But they are so small you can generally ignore them
Re: Old typewriter
ClockworkOwl
"Cullen skink soap"
I love smoked haddock, however I'll not be showering in it!
Re: Old typewriter
Doctor Syntax
"I'm not sure why they'd dump them when the war had ended"
The German PTB, not realising Enigma had been cracked, ordered them to be dumped. Rather like our PTB ordering Colossus to be scrapped.
That's pretty good sonar...
sbt
...to pick up an object of the Enigma's size.
Re: That's pretty good sonar...
Wellyboot
Yes, and it's a sonar set available to civilians, make of that what you will.
Old typewriter
The marine biologists thought it was an old typewriter. Micro biologists and molecular biologists get annoyed at being lumped together with marine biologists, whose only qualification is looking good in woollen sweaters.
Apparently they had different Enigmas on u-boats, so this was thrown off a warship. I'm not sure why they'd dump them when the war had ended, I guess it was like clearing your browsing history while having a heart attack.
[Speaking of heart attacks, here is my recipe for Cullen skink soap. It's [1]this recipe , then you double the double cream and add a cup of Islay malt]
[1] https://www.theguardian.com/food/2020/dec/02/how-to-make-cullen-skink-recipe-soup-felicity-cloake