Anglers spot something poking out of seafloor — leading to rare ancient find in Italy
A pair of keen-eyed anglers noticed something abnormal sticking out of the seafloor off the coast of Sicily, Italy. When marine archaeologists investigated, they found dozens of rare ancient items.
Two anglers reported a shipwreck off the coast of Vendicari Nature Reserve in January 2022, Sicily’s Superintendence of the Sea said in an Oct. 30 Facebook post. The wreck sat about 230 feet underwater and had never been investigated.
A team of marine archaeologists decided to change that.
While scuba diving at the wreck site, archaeologists found a pile of 40 rare ancient Roman jars sitting on the seafloor. Some of the containers were partially buried in the sand, but many were visible and still stacked in their original cargo positions.
The shipwrecked jars date between 1,900 and 2,100 years old, officials said.
Photos show the collection of long, skinny jars. They have wide mouths, a spiral design and pointed bases. Depending on the lighting, the jars had a purple-orange hue.
Archaeologists identified the jars as a rare type of pottery known as the Richborough 527 type, officials said. Richborough 527 containers were first identified in and named after Richborough, England, but have since been found elsewhere in England and in Lipari, Italy. Based on previous studies, experts suspect Richborough 527 jars were used to transport alum, a type of mineral mined in Lipari.
Archaeologists don’t know if the jars found off Sicily’s coast were used for ancient alum trade but plan to investigate the possibility.
During the dives, archaeologists also identified the wreck as an ancient transport ship, officials said.
Vendicari Nature Reserve is along the southeastern coast of Sicily, an island off the southern tip of Italy and a roughly 550-mile drive southeast from Rome.
Google Translate was used to translate the news release from Sicily’s Superintendence of the Sea.
This story was originally published November 4, 2024 at 10:23 AM with the headline "Anglers spot something poking out of seafloor — leading to rare ancient find in Italy."
