Should the site of the Titanic wreckage be off-limits to everyone -- including explorers, filmmakers, treasure-hunters and so on?

What a surprise that an American company claimed it.

I think it should be marked as a mass grave and just left alone. It's slowly collapsing in on itself anyway due to the pressure down there, so just let it go. Same with Yamato, Bismark, etc... leave them alone.

Yes, off-limits...specially to James Cameron.

Who cares???

It's private property,

from the guardian newspaper

After a series of court battles, an American company, RMS Titanic Inc (RMST), emerged as the owner of the salvage rights, allowing it to keep possession and put on touring display the 5,900 artefacts it has lifted from the ship during six dives

I vote no. There's no good reason to disallow people from entering. It's not a graveyard, and it's not private property is it?

The world has been up for grabs for such a long time now, that any feelings of "it's sacrosanct" just doesn't cut it at all.

Museums are full of the booty of diggings under the name of exploration or scientific research or anthropological investigation that it really doesn't matter.

Attaching the emotive "graveyard" tag to it means nought, when we consider that many of the richest bodies of cutural wonders that have been exhumed are from burial sights or places where the dead abound.

I agree with smithinjapan 's last sentence..

so i feel that USS Arizona and the Titanic should be treated in similar ways.. if no one enters the memorial then why should the Titanic be seen different? even if they weren't attacked many people still died there. and the opposite, if people are allowed into Titanic then why not USS Arizona?

I think its disrespectful.. but i also think it could be interesting research, but i dont think they should be seen differently..

I would imagine a lot of the 'riches' or what have you to be found in the Titanic site have been taken, and those that haven't should be taken and kept by historians, museums, or what have you. This is not at all the same as the USS Arizona, where many bodies still remain from the horrible attack on Pearl Harbour, so I don't quite agree with the graveyard thing, so long as the site is treated with respect. My only concern would be treasure hunters, but they have a right to go and explore any ships not claimed by other treasure hunters/governments, so what can you do? If a government claims the rights to the remains perhaps they could allow treasure hunters there under certain conditions and with accompaniment.

The TItanic sunk LONG ago, and while some relatives may still live who had family that went down with the ship, like it or not it is a pretty big historical incident. It's natural for people to be curious, and want to see the real thing, learn more about it, and I don't think they should be denied. Hell, if that weren't the case, why did the movie (and even the 80s "Raise the Titanic") do so well? I don't see why we should celebrate learning more about some ships and salvaging their goods than others.

Treasure hunters yes. Explorers, no. Show respect. It is fine to visit a grave yard. Just don't dig it up. Simple.

It's no like Joe-hobby diver can enter there at 3800m of depth. If you have 50.000$ person and team up with the scientist guys running the subs you might get down there.

Than again, In Germany they rent out grave sites for 20 years and if after that time you don't repay it will be flattened and somebody else can be buried there.

So if they would want to and had the technical ability's to, they could raise it and it would be fine by me.

I agree it is disrepectful. Ship wrecks are considered to be graves, a bit of respect for the dead please!

I equate it to someone digging up a graveyard, so yes. Viewing from afar is ok by me. As for actually entering the ship itself I think is disrespectful. You don't see people going inside the USS Arizona memorial looting valuables.