3 min read
Here’s what you’ll learn when you read this story:
A Sicilian spearfisherman thought he was exploring a large rock when he discovered a Roman-era shipwreck with hundreds of amphorae. Found off the coast of Sicily, the wreck measures 69 feet long and 20 feet wide.The clay amphorae were likely once used to transport wine and olive oil throughout the Mediterranean.
When spearfisherman Giacomo De Mola descended 150 feet below the water’s surface off the coast of Sicily, he expected to find a large rock. Instead, he discovered an ancient Roman shipwreck laden with hundreds of amphorae.
“I moved closer. And my heart stopped. It wasn’t a rock,” he wrote in a translated post on Instagram. “This is, without a doubt, the most incredible discovery of my life. It’s hard to describe what it feels like to be among the first humans in nearly 20 centuries to see that place again.”
De Mola surfaced and told his fishing partner he couldn’t imagine what was down there. The duo then alerted the Sicilian Regional Superintendency of the Sea, which brought in the Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage. Further exploration brought to light some of the details of the merchant ship’s cargo.
The ship stretches 69 feet long and 20 feet wide, according to the BBC, and dates to either the first or second century B.C.E. It rests about three miles off the coast of Mazara del Vallo, Sicily, according to a translated statement from the command, and has quite the haul of ancient amphorae.
The hundreds of amphorae are largely Dressel 1As—a type of tall jug featuring two handles that was popular with Romans—but there are some Lamboglia 2s (which were primary used for shipping wine), a few jugs that likely originated in North Africa, and even older Neo-Punic examples. The collection is so dense that the artifacts stack nearly seven feet high over an area over 60 feet long and 20 feet wide, according to a translated statement from the Italian Ministry of Culture. The jugs were once key in the transport of wine and olive oil throughout the Mediterranean, and according to De Mola, they now house a thriving underwater museum of sea life.
“This is one of the most significant underwater archaeological discoveries of recent years,” said Alessandro Giuli, the Italian Minister of Culture. “The sea continues to give back previous fragments of our history, and the wreck of Mazara del Vallo tells us about these people, the routes, and the trade that made the Mediterranean a crossroads of civilization. Research will continue to uncover its story.”
It’s too early to tell the condition of the shipwreck just yet. “There is no plan now to raise the entire shipwreck but some of the artifacts may be brought up for study,” a ministry spokesperson told CNN. “It may turn into a dive site. It may eventually be raised. There is more to study in terms of the fragility of the wreck site.”
Officials have protected the site and plan further exploration. “This time we didn’t just find a wreck,” De Mola wrote, “we found a piece of our history.”
Tim Newcomb is a journalist based in the Pacific Northwest. He covers stadiums, sneakers, gear, infrastructure, and more for a variety of publications, including Popular Mechanics. His favorite interviews have included sit-downs with Roger Federer in Switzerland, Kobe Bryant in Los Angeles, and Tinker Hatfield in Portland.