Roman-era shipwreck and building remains discovered off the coast of Delos

Archaeologists discovered a shipwreck earlier this month off the Greek island of Delos, which was a sanctuary dedicated to the Greek gods Apollo and Artemis during the classical period of Greek antiquity between the fourth and fifth centuries BC.

Divers inspect submerged building remains off the Greek island of Delos 
[Credit: Greek Ministry of Culture]

The site was a major commercial hub in the first century BC, bustling with people and trade.

Researchers from the French Archaeological School at Athens and Greece’s Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities worked together on an underwater excavation between Sept. 5 and 15, discovering well-preserved objects dating back to the Graeco-Roman period inside a submerged shipwreck. Delos, a small island, is just two miles southwest of the famous tourist attractions of Mykonos.

Artefacts found in the Graeco-Roman wreck 
[Credit: Greek Ministry of Culture]

Building remains, including about twenty fragments of columns and pillars, were found a little further north.

The remains appear to be public buildings, according to Angeliki Simosi, director of the Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities.

A column to the west of a bulwark found deep underwater 
[Credit: Greek Ministry of Culture]

The discoveries reveal a great deal of new information about the island’s port infrastructure and buildings, Simosi told Koini Gnomi, a local newspaper.

Simosi pointed out that the finds will help archaeologists reconstruct the map of ancient Delos with more accuracy.

“The benefits of this investigation are great,” she said.

Author: Danae Leivada | Source: Huffington Post [September 30, 2016]