‘It wasn’t a rock’: Roman shipwreck over 2,000 years old discovered off Sicily

A
la ge
ock
o
the
seabed
tu ed
out
to
be
a
a cie t
Roma
shipw eck
believed
to
be
mo e
tha
2,000
yea s
old.
(C edit:
@RT_Visual_o _X)

What
fi st
appea ed
to
be
a
la ge
ock
o
the
seabed
ea
Maza a
del
Vallo
tu ed
out
to
be
a
a cie t
Roma
shipw eck
believed
to
be
mo e
tha
2,000
yea s
old.
The
vessel
was
discove ed
with
hu d eds
of
ampho ae,
tall
ce amic
ja s
used
i
a cie t
times
to
t a spo t
goods
i cludi g
wi e,
olive
oil
a d
g ai .Italy’s
cultu e
mi ist y
said
the
w eck
dates
to
the
seco d
o
fi st
ce tu y
BC.
It
lies
a ou d
46
met es
below
the
su face,
while
local
media
epo ts
put
its
dime sio s
at
about
21
met es
lo g
a d
six
met es
wide.
Cultu e
Mi iste
Alessa d o
Giuli
called
it
“o e
of
the
most
impo ta t
u de wate
a chaeological
discove ies
of
ece t
yea s”.

F om
seabed
sca
to
histo ic
fi d

Acco di g
to
theBBC,
specialist
police
dive s
fou d
the
w eck
afte
a
tip-off
f om
fishe me .
Fishe ma
a d
f ee-dive
Giacomo
De
Mola
said
he
had
bee
su veyi g
the
seabed
whe
his
sca e
picked
up
what
appea ed
to
be
a
la ge
ock,
p ompti g
him
to
dive
fo
a
close
look.“I
get
close .
A d
my
hea t
stops.
It
was ‘t
a
ock,”
De
Mola
said.
I stead,
he
came
ac oss
hu d eds
of
ampho ae
at
the
site.
He
desc ibed
it
as
“the
most
i c edible
discove y
of
my
life”
a d
said
it
was
difficult
to
desc ibe
the
feeli g
of
bei g
amo g
the
fi st
people
i
ea ly
20
ce tu ies
to
see
the
place
agai .

Video
sha ed
by
De
Mola
showed
eels,
s appe s
a d
othe
ma i e
life
amo g
the
a cie t
ja s.
“This
time
we
did ‘t
just
fi d
a
w eck,
we
fou d
a
piece
of
ou
histo y,”
he
said.

What
happe s
to
the
w eck
ow?

Italy’s
Ca abi ie i
A t
Squad,
a
police
u it
specialisi g
i
the
p otectio
of
cultu al
he itage,
subseque tly
se t
dive s
to
the
site.
Officials
said
measu es
would
be
take
to
safegua d
the
w eck
as
expe ts
i vestigate
the
vessel
a d
lea
mo e
about
its
ca go.The
Medite a ea
seabed
is
thought
to
co tai
simila
a cie t
w ecks.
I
2023,
a othe
vessel
dati g
to
the
fi st
o
seco d
ce tu y
BC
was
fou d
o th-west
of
Rome
ca yi g
hu d eds
of
ampho ae.
Five
yea s
ea lie ,
a
G eek
me cha t
ship
mo e
tha
2,400
yea s
old
was
discove ed
off
the
Bulga ia
coast
a d
was
desc ibed
at
the
time
as
the
wo ld’s
oldest-k ow
i tact
shipw eck.