The holds more secrets. Advanced technology will reveal them.
The Antikythera Shipwreck (circa 60 B.C.) is the richest ancient wreck ever discovered. Greek sponge divers located the wreck by chance close inshore of Antikythera Island in 1900. They spent a year salvaging its treasures, with the help of the Hellenic Navy. The divers recovered hundred of works of art including the fabulous bronze and marble statues that now fill galleries at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens. The wreck also relinquished a mysterious clockwork device, the Antikythera Mechanism.
What does the wreck still hold? Locals on Antikythera tell tales of giant marble statues lying beyond the sponge divers’ reach. Records from the 1901 salvage indicate at least one large marble statue was dropped during recovery operations, and there are hints that others were dragged into deeper water under the mistaken belief they were just boulders. Meanwhile, ancient technology geeks like us wonder whether the site might be hiding another Antikythera mechanism, more pieces of the original, or at least some clues as to whom this mysterious object belonged to.
Speculation abounds, because no scientific study has ever been conducted on the wreck. Only one officially sanctioned investigation has been allowed since the 1901 operation. Undersea explorer Jacques Cousteau and the Calypso crew worked at the site for several weeks in 1976, with the approval of the Ministry of Culture and under the supervision of Greek archaeologist Dr. Lazaros Kolonas. Cousteau knew where to dive, because he had previously visited the island in 1953, accompanied by MIT professor Harold “Doc” Edgerton. They dived for only three days in 1953, but saw enough to entice them back in 1976 to film a television show, Diving for Roman Plunder. The team dredged a section of the wreck to reveal more artifacts for the cameras.
Since that expedition, no one has dived the wreck.
Cue all-round excitement when in October 2012 our team of divers from the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution and the Hellenic Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities went back for a proper look. The divers used James Bond-style closed circuit rebreathers and diver propulsion vehicles equipped, with high-resolution video cameras. In eight operational days, we circumnavigated the island at about 40 metres depth. At the wreck site, we found artifacts scattered over a wide area of the steep, rocky sea floor. These include intact pottery, the ship’s lead anchor and some puzzling bronze objects. The team believes that hundreds more items could be buried in the sediment nearby.
The Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports has directed our team to continue investigation of the wreck. Beginning in September 2014 and continuing for one month, we will map the site precisely with an autonomous robot carrying stereocameras and sonar. Our specially trained technical diving teams will begin excavation of the wreck. Our mixed gas closed circuit rebreathers will give each diver more than 30 minutes of bottom time per day, far in excess of the dive durations of any previous efforts on the wreck.
We will also deploy the Exosuit, a one-of-a-kind diving system made by Nuytco. Owned by JF White Contracting (a project sponsor), the Exosuit looks like something from science fiction: Ironman for underwater science. With Exosuit, our divers can safely descend to 1000 feet (300+ m) and stay for hours, without having to decompress on the way back to the surface.
Aided by underwater metal detectors and an accurate site plan, we will assess the layout of the wreck and distribution of debris and material from it. We expect to locate and recover an assortment of artifacts. The recovery operations in 1901 and 1976 offer tantalizing proof of what remains: ceramic jars and galleyware, oil lamps, gold jewellery, silver and bronze coins, bronze statuettes, fine glass objects, remnants of the ship’s hull, elements of marble sculpture, and even human skeletal remains. Since the ship was transporting the highest quality of luxury goods, there is a very real possibility of unimaginable finds, similar in importance to the Mechanism.
1900 – 1901: The Discovery
In the spring of 1900, two sponge fishing boats from the island of Symi came to anchor off the east coast of Antikythera. Waiting for calm seas before proceeding to their intended fishing grounds, the sponge divers decided to dive along the island’s coast. Diver Ilias Stadiatis happened upon the wreck at depths reported between 42 and 50 m, and he brought to the surface an arm from a bronze statue.
Representatives of the Hellenic government, the crew, and the sponge divers on the deck of the Hellenic Navy vessel “Mykali”, during the winter 1900-1901.
© Ministry of Culture and Sports – National Archive of Monuments
In November that year, sponge boat captain Dimitrios Kontos alerted the authorities in Athens of the discovery. Reaction was swift: the Hellenic Royal Navy vessel Mykali was dispatched to the island to support recovery operations, followed soon by the civilian steam ship Syros and later the Navy torpedo boat Aigialeia.
The Kontos family in Symi. Image courtesy of Eleni Kladaki-Vratsanou
Over the course of the next several months, the divers braved winter storms and dives beyond 50 m. They shared a single diving suit and helmet, taking turns of ten minutes twice per day. Despite the divers’ great skill and personal bravery, two men were severely injured and another diver lost his life. By the end of the operation in September 1901, only five men were still it
to dive.
A Symian sponge diving ‘kaiki’ at Antikythera during the 1901 recovery. © Ministry of Culture and Sports – National Archive of Monuments
1953: Cousteau re-locates the wreck with Doc Edgerton
In 1953 Captain Jacques-Yves Cousteau sailed from France to the Aegean in the famous ship Calypso. On board with him was MIT engineering professor Harold “Doc” Edgerton. Doc had a new underwater strobe to test, financed by the National Geographic Society. The MIT Archives hold Doc’s letters to National Geographic President Dr. Gilbert Grosvenor, relating the team’s experiences.
Bronze strap recovered from the Antikythera Shipwreck by Cousteau in 1953. Courtesy MIT Museum, Harold Edgerton Collection
On 15 August, Calypso weighed anchored off Kythera and sailed to “Cerigotto”, the Venetian name for Antikythera. On the morning of 16 August, Frederic Dumas and Cousteau dived on the wreck site. They noted the main artifact concentration at 55 m, and followed the debris trail to a depth of nearly 70 m. They and other Calypso divers ranged a quarter mile north and south from the wreck to see what else they could find. At a point about 500 feet south, they located another ancient shipwreck. It was marked by amphoras sticking out of the sand at 42 m depth, with a lead anchor stock nearby.
Another Roman amphora recovered in 1953 from the second wreck at Antikythera. Courtesy MIT Museum, Harold Edgerton Archive.
After surfacing, Dumas began rubbing his shoulder and arm, complaining of “diver’s bends”. The symptoms were severe enough that despite taking aspirin and a sedative, Dumas was unable to sleep all night. As dawn broke, he went for another dive on the second wreck even though he couldn’t use his arm. At depth the pain eased and he swam delighted over the wreck’s enormous Roman amphoras. Back on Calypso afterwards, the pain returned with a vengeance. Dumas wrote in his memoir 30 Centuries Under the Sea, “my shoulder felt as if someone stuck a knife into it”; but eventually the pain diminished and after a few days disappeared entirely.
More drama awaited the team. During the night of 16 August, Doc Edgerton and his son tested the experimental underwater strobe and camera in the island’s harbor, Potamos. The flashes were visible from shore, and a concerned local alerted the island’s lone policeman. The policeman came aboard Calypso to protest, stating that he would inform the authorities in Athens. Edgerton related to Grosvenor, “There was no objection to above-water photos – but underwater, that was different!” Cousteau had obtained permission from the Greek government for all of their activities, but nevertheless, the police ordered the ship to leave the island immediately.
One of the large Roman amphoras recovered in 1953 by the Cousteau team from the second wreck at Antikythera. Courtesy MIT Museum, Harold Edgerton Archive
Calypso sailed to Piraeus and then on to Delos, but returned to Antikythera a week later. Again, Edgerton’s letters to Grosvenor provide details of their activities. He wrote that in the few days between visits to Antikythera, Cousteau had designed and built a water dredge so the team could remove sediment at the wreck site. Anchoring Calypso over the wreck allowed the divers to descend directly to it. In succession through the day, they stayed at 55 m for 8 minutes. Cousteau and his companions recovered a roof tile and a curious bronze strap. Dumas unearthed hull remains during his dive: wooden planks fastened together with treenails and bronze nails. After a long day of diving, the entire crew was tired by dinnertime. Cousteau ordered the ship away, and they made for Delphi.
Edgerton noted the team’s interest in continuing work on the wreck site. He wrote, “It will take much effort to find the art treasures at the Cerigotto wreck. However, both Cousteau and Dumas feel strongly that the sands cover the best pieces that were down in the hold of the ship. These objects were covered by sand first and therefore are protected from the worms and actions of of the sea.”
References:
- Frederic Dumas, 30 Centuries Under the Sea (New York: Crown Publishers, 1976).
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology Archives: Harold Eugene Edgerton, Papers 1889-1990, Box 31, MC 25.
1976: Cousteau returns
In 1976, the government of the Hellenic Republic invited Captain Cousteau to come to Greece and dive at several sites. The purpose was to produce a series of television shows showcasing the beauty and history of Greece. These dives at Dia, Antikythera, Delos, and eslewhere became episodes in the 1970s series, The Cousteau Odyssey. The Antikythera episode was titled, “Diving for Roman Plunder.”
On site at Antikythera, Cousteau moored CALYPSO over site in a web of lines running to shore and to anchors set around the wreck. The ship had to be safely secured, as the divers and Greek colleagues descended to the wreck with a dredge connected to a pump aboard CALYPSO. If the ship moved, it would drag the dredge hose and the divers away from the work site.
Working with the dredge in 10-minute dives, CALYPSO’s team and their Greek colleagues sucked away sediments to expose artifacts. In 27 days and despite frequent bad weather, they recovered hundreds of objects: ceramic vessels, components of marble statues, bronze statuettes, bronze coins, gold jewelry and gemstones, fine glassware, and human skeletal remains.
While preparing for the 2014 expedition, our team had the pleasaure and honor of meeting Lefteris Tsavliris, who participated in the 1976 program. He kindly shared pictures and text recounting some of his experiences, posted here:
—
My name is Lefteris Tsavliris, I am a surveyor engineer and Managing Director of AKTI ENGINEERING which is involved with Marine and Land Surveying Services. In 1976, I was 22 years old and student of the surveying department of the National Technical University of Athens.
Having a big love with everything that is related with research and the sea, during my Diploma Thesis I made contact with very important archeologists such as George Papathanasopoulos who was the pioneer of the Marine Archeology in Greece. At that time, the only organization involved with the Marine Archeology was the Greek Institute of Marine Archaeology and other friends of Marine Archaeology from Greece and from abroad. I have been member of this institute since 1974.
In 1976, Jacques Yves Cousteau agreed with the Greek Government to make a movie production regarding the Greek Marine Archeological treasures. The Greek Ministry of Culture asked from the Greek Institute of Marine Archeology to support the supervision of the Cousteau operation by sending some of its divers – members. The Greek Institute of Marine Archeology supported the supervision of the operations with its members, the amateur divers Vasilis Vitalis, John Garas, and Petros Nikolaidis.Thanks to the experience I had gained participating in similar expeditions between 1974 and 1976, I was invited to take part in the new operation as well. I accepted without hesitation as the dream of any diver was to work close to the holy monster of marine research, Jacques Yves Cousteau.
The divers Lefteris Tsavliris and Vasilis Vitalis on board “Calypso”, joined by Calypso diver Raymond Cole.
So, in June of 1976, my colleague Vasilis Vitalis and I were found on board “Calypso”, the Cousteau research vessel, above the famous Antikythera shipwreck, ready to start working for a supplementary excavation to the first one which had been carried out in 1900 and 1901.
Our job was to work for the excavation with the Cousteau divers and to help the authorized Marine Archeology representative for the operation, Mr Lazaros Kolonas, to supervise the research. The operations were completed in November of 1976, after some pause due to bad weather conditions.
Diver Lefteris Tsavliris working for the recovery of the bronze statuettes. (Water depth 54m)
The head of the air lift and the iron rod for the rock breaking for the release of the bronze statuettes.
The divers Lefteris Tsavliris and Vasilis Vitalis in decompression under “Calypso” keel.
—The 2014 team offers it sincere thanks to Lefteris Tsavliris for his generosity.
The Island: Aegila, or Cerigotto, or Antikythera
A tour of the Antikythera island by the diving team of the “Return to Antikythera” Project.
In some ways, Antikythera seems unchanged from historical accounts. The stone dwelling shown in the video (above) was inhabited within living memory. Very little land is under cultivation, and the island’s population of goats far exceeds that of people. Potamos village, nestled among the rocks edging the island’s only harbor, feels timeless. During the Cousteau team’s 1953 visit, author James Dugan sketched the island and its people in his expedition logbook. Here are glimpses of post-war Antikythera.
Sketch of Potamos village, Antikythera 1953 by James Dugan. Courtesy MIT Archives, Harold Eugene Edgerton Papers.
Sketch of policeman, Antikythera, 1953 by James Dugan. Courtesy MIT Archives, Harold Eugene Edgerton Papers.
Another historical account of Antikythera and its environs paints a somewhat less welcoming portrait. In 1807 the Royal Navy ship NAUTILUS wrecked on breaking rocks west of Antikythera, ever since known as Nautilus Reef. Our first investigation of the reef came in 2012, when project teammate Alex Vallianos reported that he’d heard of cannons in the outcropping’s shallow water. We dived and found a wreck consisting of several naval guns, iron shot, and iron ballast. Subsequent archival research allowed us to identify the wreck (and determine why the reef is so named), bringing to light a survivor’s account and the Admiralty Court Martial proceedings.
(Above) Two views of Nautilus Reef, one from Poretti islet (top) and the other (bottom) taken from about a mile north of the outcrop.
Royal Navy purser John Boone described the Antikytherans and their island after the NAUTILUS survivors were rescued by them. While his estimate of the island’s size is not accurate (the island is only about 7 miles long and 2 miles wide), his description of the inhabitants’ homes is reminiscent of the stone dwelling we visited:
We found Cerigotto, an island belonging to the dependency of Cerigo, inhabited by twelve or fourteen families of fishermen. It may be about fifteen miles long, and ten broad; its soil appears barren and uncultivated. The inhabitants are in the lowest state of poverty and wretchedness, their huts are built generally against the rock, and consist of one or two rooms on the same floor, the walls are clay and straw, and the roof is supported by a tree, which is placed in the centre of the dwelling; their food indicates extreme poverty, being a coarse kind of bread made from boiled pease and flour, this, with occasionally a bit of kid, was all the Greek fishermen, our deliverers, could offer us. They drink a strong liquor made from corn, the flavour of which is agreeable, and from its strength, our sailors drank it with great avidity….
The Greeks treated us with the greatest kindness, but were unable to assist us in the cure of our wounds, which were exceedingly painful; and which obliged us to tear up our shirts to bind them. We were aware we could not obtain medical assistance until we reached Cerigo, where we should find an English consul.
It was eleven days before we could accomplish this, as the Greeks were very timid, and, therefore, we found it difficult to persuade them to venture as far as Cerigo, a distance of five and twenty miles, in their frail barks. At length the wind proving fair, and the sea being remarkably smooth, we left Cerigotto, and at our departure the families of the fishermen were s0 affected by our distresses, that they shed tears of sympathy and regret. After about eight hours sail, we reached Cerigo, and were received with open arms.
Traveling aboard CALYPSO with Jacques-Yves Cousteau, MIT Professor Harold “Doc” Edgerton recounted the legend of NAUTILUS in a 1953 letter to Gilbert Grosvenor at National Geographic. Doc wrote:
The trip from Cerigotto (Antikythera) Island to Cerigo (Kythir) was interrupted by a stop at Nautilus Rocks that are only a few feet above sea level. Here our divers went into the water after we anchored on the lee side. Soon they were back with several spherical iron cannon balls, about five inches in diameter. Also a small lead spherical bullet flattened on one side. They reported several old cannon in the water. Apparently an old wooden ship foundered there and very little is left due to waves and tides.
A local legend says that the crew of a wrecked ship once landed here on Nautilus when their ship broke up. The crew ate the captain after hunger came upon them! When the crew was finally rescued, they were all crazy.
The local Antikytheran legend of NAUTILUS contained elements of truth. NAUTILUS’ crew spent six days marooned on the icy rocks in January 1807. Men drank seawater in a desperate attempt to slake their terrible thirst, and lapsed into raving madness. Storm waves washed men from their precarious toeholds and smashed bodies against jagged outcrops. Constantly wet, hypothermic, with no water or food, nearly half of the crew succumbed including Captain Palmer. John Boone reveals a truly horrible decision point after five days on the desolate rock, when survival dictated an irretrievable action:
Our hunger and thirst were now extreme; we knew that unfortunate men in our situation had been reduced to adopt means to relieve themselves, which, for a long time, disgust prevented us from resorting to; but when we considered these were the only means left us to preserve our lives, we thought we might in some measure be excused for adopting them: and we prepared for the mournful alternative, with the most awful sense of the dreadful necessity that had compelled us to adopt it. We selected a young man who had died the night before, and having offered our prayers to heaven for forgiveness, we tasted human flesh.
NAUTILUS wrecked about 4:30 a.m. on Monday, 5 January 1807. As the crew scrambled through the surf onto the rocks, the ship’s small whaleboat was able to get away with a few men. Under the command of Quartermaster and Coxswain George Smith, they rowed to Pori, a rocky islet about 6 miles north of the reef. Smith’s testimony at the Court Martial later in the year tersely describes the events after the boat made it to Pori:
Between 12 and 1 in the night one of us discovered a light and we certainly thought some of the Nautilus’s men were on the rock. Finding the weather moderated very fast I ask’d who would volunteer to go down with me in the boat to see who was living. Four and myself went. When we found them very numerous telling them we could take 10 in the boat and no more. We took the pilot to talk the language. He came in the 5th person and desired I would not take in any more. We then pulled away to Cerigotto. The natives came down armed and much alarmed at seeing us. When the pilot went out and spoke to them they behaved with the greatest humanity, trying day after day to get the boat off the beach which was not accomplished till Saturday morning at 2 o’clock. We then returned to the rock at 10 or 11 o’clock and took the remainder of our people back to Cerigotto. I could perceive only 10 of our number that were likely to survive that night.
When NAUTILUS struck the reef, she carried 122 men. Six days later, the seas finally calmed enough for the Antikytheran fishermen to launch their boats and rescue the men still huddled on the rocks. Ultimately, 64 survivors made landfall on Antikythera.
See also: this post with the local people from Antikythera
Sources:
NARRATIVE OF THE LOSS OF HIS MAJESTY’S LATE SLOOP OF WAR, NAUTILUS, WRECKED IN JANUARY, 1807, ON A REEF OF ROCKS BETWEEN THE ISLANDS OF CERIGO AND CANDIA IN THE GRECIAN ARCHIPELAGO. BY THE LATE JOHN BOONE, PURSER IN HIS MAJESTY’S SERVICE, ONE OF THE SURVIVORS. DEVONPORT: PRINTED BY HOXLAND AND COLMAN, FORE-STREET, 1827
Harold Eugene Edgerton, “Letter to Gilbert Grosvenor, 20 August 1953” MIT Archives, Harold Eugene Edgerton, Papers, 1889-1990, MC 25 Box 31 Folder 7.
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