Excavation works on a sunken vessel dated to the post Hellenistic era off the small island of Styra, in the southern Euboean Gulf separating the mainland and the large island of Euboea, were concluded for 2010.
The ancient vessel was loaded with numerous amphorae and vases once filled with assorted food-stuffs and wines. Among the ship’s cargo archaeologists also found an assortment of stone and bronze objects, including fragments from statues of natural size, as well as two legs from a reclining couch.
Both the range and quality of the items thus far recovered from the wreck suggest that it was a merchant vessel laden with high-value products destined for wealthy clientele.
Also noteworthy is the fact that segments of the ship’s wooden hull and stern (complete with bronze and iron nails) were well preserved by the sand which partially covered it.
The wreck was discovered in 2007 at a depth of 40 to 45 metres and has been dated to the end of the 2nd or early 1st centuries BCE.
Thirty-six divers, researchers, archaeologists, photographers, architects and other experts took part in the underwater excavation.
The research was organised by the Maritime Antiquities Ephorate and the Institute of Maritime Archaeological Research. Further excavation of the wreck is planned for 2011.
Source: Epirotica [November 23, 2010]