Sponge Diving Boat

3D ModelNoAI

The Aegean Isles is a 42-ft. sponge diving boat in Tarpon Springs, Florida. The original name given the boat when it was built in 1935 was the Apalachicola. It is constructed out of cypress and pine and was made by George Castrinos of Apalachacola. The vessel was used for sponge diving from 1935-1943, then was converted to an air and sea rescue boat to assist with war time efforts and needs. The Apalachicola was used by the US Navy on rescues in the Gulf of Mexico until after WWII, when the ship was returned to its constructed purpose of a sponge diving vessel. The boat was utilized for sponging until it was decommissioned in 1982, and renamed to the Aegean Isles. The vessel was placed on exhibition at the Sponge Exchange in Tarpon Springs. Our University of South Florida team digitally documented her while out of the water in 2022. This model is a point cloud view of the 3D data captured using terrestrial laser scanning techniques.