The Late Antiquity shipwreck determined in 2019 off the coast of Marina di Ognina, close to Syracuse, is proving to be one in all Sicily`s maximum revealing underwater archaeological sites.
A new clinical venture coordinated via way of means of the Superintendency of the Sea and nicknamed “Relitto delle Olle” after the ceramic packing containers observed on board has lately finished a sparkling spherical of dives, supplying unparalleled insights into the vessel`s structure, shipment, and nation of preservation.
Through precise 3-dimensional documentation and an preliminary segment of stratigraphic sediment cleaning, researchers have been capable of decide the ship`s orientation at the seabed and estimate its unique dimensions. Preliminary analyses advocate the ruin belonged to a medium-sized shipment vessel measuring more or less 15 to 18 metres in duration and five to six metres in width.
The contemporary dives additionally exposed noteworthy ceramic pieces: an achromatic single-dealt with vase probably used as a boiler and a -dealt with achromatic pot with a lid. These unearths increase an already fantastic assemblage that has remained undisturbed for centuries.
“Thanks to fashionable and complex gadget, we're persevering with our clinical research,” stated Francesco Paolo Scarpinato, Sicilian Regional Councillor for Cultural Heritage and Sicilian Identity. “These operations will assist make clear the kind and chronology of the vessel, in addition to higher apprehend the character of its shipment and the situations of its sinking.”
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| Image Credit : Sicilian Region |
According to Ferdinando Maurici, Superintendent of the Sea, the webweb page is remarkably intact. “The `Wreck of the Olle` offers itself as a website of super potential, nonetheless wealthy in facts that isn't right now perceptible,” he explained. “The extraordinarily homogeneous shipment has survived in super condition, untouched via way of means of trawl nets or clandestine interventions.”
One of the venture`s key goals is to completely map the shipment, an vital step to calculating the vessel`s specific dimensions. Although simplest constrained lines of wooden were observed, they advocate that a part of the hull might also additionally nonetheless lie preserved below the ceramic load.
The operation worried a wide community of specialists. The Superintendency of the Sea oversaw the dives, even as Capo Murro Diving Center in Syracuse furnished logistical support. Deep-sea divers from Global Underwater Explorers (GUE) contributed technical expertise.
Photogrammetric paintings turned into performed via way of means of Luca Palezza and Eduardo Salaj; organic observations have been done via way of means of Linda Pasolli; and gadget turned into designed via way of means of Cristiano Rosa. Dive coordination turned into controlled via way of means of Fabio Portella below the supervision of Ninny Di Grazia.
The ruin`s tale started out in 2019, whilst Portella, an honorary inspector for underwater cultural heritage, and Stefano Gualtieri diagnosed early lines of the webweb page for the duration of a dive to record 19th-century telegraph cables. In 2021, divers pinpointed the coronary heart of the ruin, relationship it tentatively to the 5th–sixth centuries AD.
The shipment consisted of severa ceramic vessels organized in 4 wonderful modules, at the side of lids of 3 exclusive types. Following the formal document to the Superintendency, numerous diagnostic artefacts, together with jars, 3 lids, and a single-dealt with kettle have been recovered for study.