Press Releases Facts & Research
September 07, 2007
Divers find Roman wreck off Cape Greco
By Jean Christou
ARCHAEOLOGISTS have found a Roman wreck dating from the first century A.D. off Cape Greco towards the Protaras area, it emerged yesterday.
During late July and early August, a small international team of archaeologists and students undertook a brief season of underwater diving survey along the island’s east coast.
The project followed four seasons in and around Episkopi Bay on the south coast, and was financially and logistically supported by the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, Texas A&M University, the University of Pennsylvania, and RPM Nautical Foundation, with the additional support of a research vessel and equipment from the Thetis Foundation of Limassol.
Three weeks were spent at sheltered inlets and dangerous promontories in the area of Cape Greco and north towards Protaras area, in collaboration with the Department of Antiquities in an effort to determine the area’s long-term maritime history in advance of eventually locating well-preserved shipwrecks, an announcement said.
“A total of six stone and metal anchors recorded through the area, testify to a long history from antiquity through at least the mediaeval period of merchants stopping at the numerous natural and manmade ports that dot these shores,” it added.
It said that among the more important findings was an extensive wreck site dating to the early imperial Roman era, around the 1st century AD, which carried a mixed cargo of several amphora types, predominantly jars from the southeast Aegean area.
“Though the wreck is in shallow to moderate waters and thus disturbed by the environment, the site can still be recognised as one of some importance for understanding the region’s maritime trade during the period of Cyprus’ early incorporation into the Roman Empire,” according to the statement.
Next year, the team plans returning to several large ceramic concentrations for more extensive documentation, as well as more intensive mapping of the early Roman wreck.
“The search for cultural material, including better preserved shipwrecks, will also be extended to the deeper sandy seabed, well suited to remote sensing techniques, especially sonar but potentially also magnetometry,” the statement said.
It said the area’s prominent maritime history was evident not only by the ceramic deposits recorded at ports, anchorages and promontories, but also through reports from local divers and specific events in the historical record.
According to Diodoros, it was somewhere in the area, where in 306BC the Macedonian Demetrios the Poliorketes triumphed over Ptolemy of Egypt in one of the largest naval engagements of antiquity.
Although Ptolemy eventually victoriously returned, thus controlling the island through the rest of the Hellenistic period, nearly a hundred warships were reported as sunk during the combat.
“Hence, the course of the survey of archaeologists working in deeper waters offshore, far from the coastline appears to be hopeful,” the archaeologists concluded.
Copyright © Cyprus Mail 2007
Kyrenia Wreck, Cyprus
Built - c 325 - 315 BC
Sunk - c 295 - 285 BC
Depth - 27-30 m (89-99 ft)
Found by - Andreas Cariolou
Excavation - 1968 - 1969
Conservation - 1969 - 1974
Team - 54 (international)
Total cost - $300 000
Hull - 14 m (47 ft) long, 4.2 m (14.5 ft) wide
"It all began in the autumn of 1965. Town councilman Andreas Cariolou, diving for sponges, chanced upon a mound of 80 graceful amphoras emerging from a carpet of eel grass on the flat seabed less than a mile for Kyrenia, his home on the north coast of Cyprus. For two years he kept his secret until meeting my husband Michael Katzev and me and guiding us over the wreck. In the most dramatic dive of our lives we were alone with the ancient jars, now homes for darting squirrelfish, untouched by man for 2,300 years.
Two summers of excavation peeled away layers of cargo, dining wares, tools, ship's rigging, and even four bone eyelets from a sailor's sandals. Cradling them like open hands was the still curving ship that had borne them from foreign ports and at last took them to the sea floor. Sixty percent of the ship and more than 75 percent of her representative timbers lay exposed..."
- Susan Womer Katzev
Source
Katzev, Susan Womer. "Resurrecting an Ancient Greek Ship: Kyrenia, Cyprus," in "Beneath the Seven Seas," edited by George F. Bass, pp. 72-79. New York and London, 2005.
September 10, 2007
Cyprus to seek ancient shipwrecks
By Michele Kambas
NICOSIA (Reuters) - Cyprus is to launch sea surveys in an area where dozens of vessels led by warring successors to Alexander the Great are believed to have sunk in battle for control over the island in 306 BC.
Encouraged by the discovery of one wreck from a later Roman era, the survey slated for the summer of 2008 will extend into deep waters from the south-east tip of the island, known as Cape Greco, the island's Antiquities Department said.
"Cyprus is a crossroads and is very rich in ancient shipwrecks," said Pavlos Flourentzos, director of Cyprus's Department of Antiquities.
Historical accounts suggest that the Cape Greco region -- a rocky outcrop between the now popular tourist resorts of Agia Napa and Protaras, saw one of the biggest naval battles of the ancient world.
According to the ancient Greek historian, Diodorus of Sicily, in 306 BC Demetrios the Poliorketes (Besieger) triumphed over Ptolemy I of Egypt in a naval engagement off Cyprus, with dozens of vessels sunk as the result of combat.
"It is well known that there was a naval engagement in the region in 306 BC, so there is a potential of finding wrecks, or parts of wrecks, in deeper waters," Flourentzos told Reuters on Thursday.
Ptolemy I, one of the generals of Alexander the Great, lost control of Cyprus for a period of 10 years after his defeat at the hands of Demetrios Poliorketes. Demetrios was son of Antigonus, a Macedonian nobleman who later ruled Asia Minor.
The Cypriot Antiquities Department announced on Thursday that an ancient Roman shipwreck, dated the 1st century AD, had been found in the same area.
The extensive wreck, dating from the early Imperial Roman era, carried a mixed cargo of several amphora, predominantly jars from the southeast Aegean area.
Further mapping of the wreck would take place in 2008. Searches for better preserved shipwrecks would extend to the deeper sandy seabed which was suited to remote sensing techniques, the antiquities department said.
Authorities said the projects were financially and logistically supported by the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, Texas A&M University, the University of Pennsylvania and the RPM Nautical Foundation.
Eastern Cyprus Maritime Survey
Far-flung Trade in a Quiet Roman Neighborhood
Investigator - Justin Leidwanger, INA Research Associate
Location - Cape Greco, Southeast Cyprus
Period - circa A.D. 100
Highlights - Though scattered, the remains may provide significant insights into the long-distance and regional commercial connections of this quiet Roman province.
Fieldwork - Four weeks were dedicated to investigating a shallow shipwreck discovered during 2007. The vessel appears to have been carrying a mixed cargo in at least three amphora types: jars from southeast Asia Minor, which predominate; a small number of a poorly documented type of unknown origin, perhaps from Cyprus itself or the neighboring mainland; and, of most interest, a form manufactured along the Mediterranean coast of France, alongside what we believe are local knock-offs of these more cosmopolitan Gaulish wine jars. Thick remains of a resinous lining probably confirm a wine content, and although additional non-cargo ceramics were recorded, no anchor or other ship fittings have yet been found.
Supporting Institutions - University of Pennsylvania, RPM Nautical Foundation and the Thetis Foundation of Cyprus
Press Release
February 20, 2001
For Immediate Release
Contact Person:
Lynn Jourdan 207.967.0666
Deep Sea Explorers Discover Deepest Ancient Shipwreck Ever Found,
Four More Vessels Might Rest Nearby
Undersea Expert Nauticos Corporation Unveils
Details of Historical Find in Archaeology Magazine
While searching for a missing submarine in the Eastern Mediterranean, a group of leading deep water explorers discovered an ancient marvel which has rested at the bottom of the ocean for more than 2000 years. The discovery of this shipwreck between the classical trading centers of Rhodes and Alexandria helps challenge the long-held theory that ancient sailors lacked the skills to sail long distances over the open sea, instead forcing them to closely follow the coastline during their voyages. Archaeology magazine reports the exciting find in its March/April issue. "Nauticos' discovery turns conventional wisdom on its head," says Kristin Romey, Archaeology's assistant managing editor.
"This find revolutionizes our understanding of how trade was done 2000 years ago," says Tom Dettweiler, general manager and executive vice president of Nauticos Corporation, the nationally renowned deep sea exploration firm that located the shipwreck. "We have found more than 2000 amphorae which once bore wine, olive oil, or other classical trade items. Who knows what kinds of tools or utensils we'll find down there that will give us new understanding and answer many questions about ancient civilizations."
In the spring of 1999, Nauticos searched for and found a missing Israeli submarine that disappeared 31 years ago. Its sonar equipment detected several mysterious objects some 10,000 feet below the surface. A state-of-the-art remotely operated vehicle revealed shipwrecks of tremendous historical and archeological significance. Detailed video and sonar imagery of one of the sites was sent to the Institute of Nautical Archeology at Texas A&M University. The shape of several amphorae - large, oval two-handled vases used for storage - confirmed the vessel dates back to the end of the third century, BC. At 10,000 feet, this makes it the deepest ancient shipwreck ever found. Another striking find is a cauldron that has been collecting sediment for more than 2000 years. A core sample of this sediment could hold secrets about changes in the Mediterranean Sea over the last two millennia.
It's not the first time Nauticos has unearthed long-lost underwater articles of historical importance. Although its core business is support work for the U.S. Navy, Nauticos has achieved a number of other notable ocean discovery successes. These include serving as the Operations Manager for the Discovery Channel's 1998 Titanic special that included a live TV show. Nauticos also managed the search and discovery of the historic Japanese submarine, I-52, sunk in the Atlantic by the U.S. Navy during World War II and believed to be carrying $20 million in gold bound for Germany. Additionally Nauticos discovered a portion of the Japanese aircraft carrier KAGA sunk at the Battle of Midway, as illustrated in the recent Discovery Channel documentary "Search for the Japanese Fleet".
Nauticos provides operations and navigation expertise that specializes in deep-ocean search and underwater problem solving. Its deep-sea exploration experts offer extensive experience and unique technologies that significantly reduce search time and lower the cost of at-sea operations. These core capabilities enable Nauticos to find any object on the ocean floor to the deepest depths.
For more detailed information, see the "Ships of Ancient Greece" Concept Paper prepared by Nauticos and the Institute of Nautical Archeology
Press Release
October 19, 2000
For Immediate Release
Contact Person:
Lynn Jourdan 207.967.0666
Press Here for the Easter Cyprus Marine Survey Report
Study of shipwreck reveals treasure trove of details
By Alexia Saoulli THE DEPARTMENT of Antiquities yesterday announced the completion of the first underwater research project of the Mazotos shipwreck. Its study is expected to be of great significance for the nautical and economic history of the Eastern Mediterranean as it is one of the very few shipwrecks of the Classical period found in such a good state of preservation, the department said. “The results will throw light on important research questions such as the commercial relations between the North Aegean and the South Eastern Mediterranean and the role of Cyprus in these transport routes during the last phases of the Cypriot city-kingdoms as well as on types and sizes of ships amongst others,” it said. The project was undertaken by the Research Unit of Archaeology of the University of Cyprus in agreement with the Department of Antiquities and with funding and logistical support from the Thetis Foundation. It is the first time a project of this kind has been exclusively undertaking by Cypriot institutions. The research programme was carried out from November 17 to 24 and focused on the documentation of the shipwreck using photographic and drawing methods so as to make an initial assessment and plan the next period of research accordingly. The shipwreck seems to have been a commercial vessel of the Late Classical period (mid-300BC). Part of the cargo of the ship lies on the seabed and consists of amphorae, most probably from the Greek island of Chios. No other ceramic types were identified for the time being or any other parts of the ship but the spatial distribution of the amphorae may indicate that the hull of the ship is buried under the sand, the department said. The research was carried out by Dr Stella Demesticha, Visiting Lecturer of Underwater Archaeology at the University of Cyprus. The participants were specialists from Greece, divers of the Federation of Professional Divers and other Cypriot professional divers.