The content in Life at Sea has been selected in close collaboration with the participating libraries and archives, as well as our specialist Editorial Board members.

The resource explores the lives and experiences of seafarers in the Anglo-American maritime world in the seventeenth, eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. The varied selection of material covers the different types of sources that can be used to illuminate life at sea including journals, logbooks, correspondence, memoirs, ship’s papers, court records, artwork and material culture.

A Note on Exclusions

Life at Sea includes three centuries of material illustrating the Anglo-American maritime world. Though key themes are well-represented, the vast amount of available documents from this period prevents the inclusion of all relevant material. Where possible focus of the selection has been on narrative material.

A lengthy process of discussion between a number of archives and specialists has resulted in the partnership with the National Maritime Museum, The National Archives, Massachusetts Historical Society, and Mystic Seaport Museum. Where exclusions have been made, this has been due to:

• The need to include a range of document types.
• Fragile condition of material.
• Existing open-access content.
• Copyright and permission considerations.

_{Volume of 143 watercolours by Henry Need. © National Maritime Museum, Greenwich, London}