Survey reveals twο dοzeп shiρwrecks that ρrοve histοrical rοutes οf the Mediterraпeaп Sea

Follow the incredible voyages of the ancient Mediterranean navigators
It is possible to navigate the Mediterranean Sea using waypoints. Sea travelers moving from Europe to Africa and the Near East could make round trips without venturing into more dangerous waters, and it has always been assumed that this is what they did in the distant past.

But that was just an assumption, and it was an assumption UNESCO’s underwater archaeologists were eager to challenge.

That’s why the UN’s leading cultural organization has recruited underwater archaeologists from eight countries bordering the Mediterranean (France, Spain, Algeria, Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Croatia and Italy) to take part in a seabed exploration mission. seafarers of several years along the Sicilian Channel. . This busy central Mediterranean Sea route runs northeast from the North African coast of Tunisia to the island of Sicily, just south of the Italian peninsula. This passage is prone to storms and strong winds, and just below are the famous Skerki Banks, which feature hidden reefs and rocky peaks that almost reach the surface of the sea in several places.

This sea route is only 90 miles long and offers the fastest option for ships traveling between North Africa and Italy. This particular sea route is rich in marine life and, as well as being attractive to traders, it has also been popular with fishermen throughout history.

But for how long in history? That is the question the UNESCO-sponsored international team of archaeologists set out to answer as they traveled the Mediterranean along the Sicilian Channel on the research ship. Alfredo Merlin which is owned and operated by the French Ministry of Culture.

As they tried to map any new wrecks they could find, most of their discoveries occurred along the eastern part of the Skerki Banks, near the North African destination point of the Sicilian Channel. A total of 24 sunken ships have been identified along the Skerki Banks, which has historically been a particularly difficult place for ship captains to navigate safely.

“We knew it was a very dangerous area, and we also knew there had been a lot of looting,” UNESCO’s Faynot said. National Geographic. “We were afraid to find a deserted area, but we were happy to find remains.”

The 2,000-year-old Roman ship was discovered not far off the coast of Tunisia, and it was this discovery that most changed today’s understanding of how long ships ventured into the depths of the Mediterranean.

Roman amphoras found at the bottom of the sea with remains of ancient shipments of wine or olive oil. (V. CREUZE ROV DRASSM/UNESCO)

Close examination by underwater archaeologists revealed that this vessel was approximately 18m long and filled with amphoras, which are large Greek/Roman jugs with two handles and a conical neck that were frequently used to transport wine in Roman times. Some of the amphoras have been recovered and will be subjected to laboratory tests to see if any traces of wine are detected.

At the other end of the time spectrum, the researchers found remains that likely date to the late 19th or early 20th centuries. The ship is huge, about 250 feet (76 m) long, and made entirely of metal. No cargo has been detected, so the ship’s purpose has yet to be determined, but investigators hope a search of historical records will reveal its true identity.

In addition to their new discoveries in the central and eastern Mediterranean, the UNESCO research team was also able to verify the location of three shipwrecks previously seen off the coast of Sicily. Notably, these ships were also found to be filled with amphorae, many of which should be recoverable as they are scattered across the seabed.

Team members launch the ROV Arthur from Alfred Merlin. This machine can explore wrecks at the bottom of the sea. (UNESCO)

Robotic technology is revolutionizing underwater archeology
All of this work was done with the help of underwater ROVs (Remotely Operated Vehicles). These machines can reach much further than human divers, allowing them to closely explore the seabed along the Skerki Shoals.

“In the not too distant past, deep-sea technologies were not widely available and deep-sea projects were the domain of a few,” said University of Malta archaeologist Timmy Gambin, who was not involved in the UNESCO expedition. but he closely followed its progress. . . “Now we can systematically do deep archeology… [and] the science can now be initiated and conducted by local experts.

With so much already achieved through the deployment of these robotic underwater explorers, it is likely that their use will expand in the very near future. The current plan is to use them to explore the seabed along other routes through the Mediterranean, particularly those that travel from east to west and cover much longer distances than the Sicilian Channel. These too may have been heavily navigated in antiquity, and the discovery of new shipwrecks along these passages could show that merchant ships have been crossing the Mediterranean in all directions for not just centuries, but millennia.

The leaders of the latest UNESCO expedition have declared their intention to undertake further research along these east-west routes in the coming years, relying on underwater ROVs to bolster their efforts. What they will discover remains uncertain, but the impact of their discoveries on historical understanding will undoubtedly be dramatic.