Ostia - ancient wreck found

Listen to this article Archaeologists have come across the remains of an ancient shipwreck near Rome. The find was made during repair work on a nearby bridge. The 11-metre-long wreck is the largest discovered in the area of Ostia Antica, a port city founded 2,500 years ago. The ancient port of Ostia was not equipped

ByTomasz Andrukajtis

Published: May 14, 2011 - 13:00

Updated: March 1, 2023 - 15:52

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Archaeologists have come across the remains of an ancient shipwreck near Rome. The find was made during repair work on a nearby bridge. The 11-metre-long wreck is the largest discovered in the area of Ostia Antica, a port city founded 2,500 years ago.

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The ancient port of Ostia was not equipped to receive vessels as large as the one found, due to the sandy headland at the mouth of the river. Goods transported in such ships had to be transhipped at sea in smaller vessels capable of crossing the river and mooring at the Tiber, but this system was not sufficient to satisfy the ever-growing needs of Rome.

In 42 AD, the emperor Claudius, began the construction of an artificial harbour a few kilometres north of Ostia. A huge basin was created by enlarging a natural bay, protected by two arched piers and a lighthouse. Many ships were used to create the foundations for this structure.

In the remains found, the bow and stern are missing. It was found at a depth of 4m below ground, during the repair of a bridge linking the present-day Ostia with the town of Fiumicino, where the Roman airport named after Leonardo da Vinci is located. The age of the wreck has been determined to be approximately 25 BC. – – 197r.

The uncovering of the wreck also made it possible to establish what the coastline looked like and where it ran in those times. Today, it cuts into the Apennine Peninsula at a distance of 4km.

Archaeologist Anna Maria Moretti admitted that she was completely surprised and did not expect a find of this type. The remains of the ship are well preserved, even pieces of rope have been found! The whole thing has to be sprinkled with water all the time so that the wood doesn’t dry out. Restoring this find, she says, will be an extremely delicate process.

“If we are dealing with such an important find, money will always be found ,” said Giancarlo Galan, Minister of Cultural Heritage, referring to the possible support that would be provided.

Source: http://www.thehistoryblog.com

About author

Tomasz Andrukajtis

Editor-in-chief of the DIVERS24 portal and magazine. Responsible for obtaining, translating and developing content. He also supervises all publications. Achived his first diving certification – P1 CMAS, in 2000. Has a degree in journalism and social communication. In the diving industry since 2008.