Pavlopetri
Encyclopedia
The city of Pavlopetri, underwater off the coast of southern Laconia
in Greece
, is about 5000 years old, and is the oldest submerged archeological town site. It is unique in having an almost complete town plan, including streets, buildings, and tombs. It was discovered in 1967 by Nicholas Flemming and mapped in 1968 by a team of archaeologists from Cambridge.
It has at least 15 buildings submerged in three to four metres of water. The newest discoveries in 2009 alone cover 9,000 square meters.
Earlier, the ruins were dated to the Mycenaean period, 1600-1100 BC. Later studies showed an older occupation date starting no later than 2800 BC, so it also includes early Bronze Age
middle Minoan
and transitional material.
It is now believed that the town was submerged around 1000 BC. The area never reemerged, so it was neither built-over nor disrupted by agriculture.
Although eroded over the centuries, the town layout is as it was thousands of years ago. The site is under threat of damage by boats dragging anchors, as well as by tourists and souvenir hunters.
2009's fieldwork was largely to map the site. It is the first submerged town digitally surveyed in three dimensions. Sonar mapping techniques developed by military and oil prospecting organizations have aided recent work.
As of October 2009, four more fieldwork sessions are planned, also in collaboration with the Greek government as a joint project. Those sessions will do excavations.
Also working alongside the archaeologists, (from the University of Nottingham
) are a team from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics
, who aim to take underwater archaeology into the 21st century. They developed several unique robots to survey the site in various ways.
One of the results of the survey was to establish that the town was the centre of a thriving textile industry (from the many loom weights found in the site).
Also many large pitharis pots (from Crete
) were excavated, also indictating a major trading port.
The research is to be published in full in 2014.
Laconia
Laconia , also known as Lacedaemonia, is one of the regional units of Greece. It is part of the region of Peloponnese. It is situated in the southeastern part of the Peloponnese peninsula. Its administrative capital is Sparti...
in Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
, is about 5000 years old, and is the oldest submerged archeological town site. It is unique in having an almost complete town plan, including streets, buildings, and tombs. It was discovered in 1967 by Nicholas Flemming and mapped in 1968 by a team of archaeologists from Cambridge.
It has at least 15 buildings submerged in three to four metres of water. The newest discoveries in 2009 alone cover 9,000 square meters.
Earlier, the ruins were dated to the Mycenaean period, 1600-1100 BC. Later studies showed an older occupation date starting no later than 2800 BC, so it also includes early Bronze Age
Bronze Age
The Bronze Age is a period characterized by the use of copper and its alloy bronze as the chief hard materials in the manufacture of some implements and weapons. Chronologically, it stands between the Stone Age and Iron Age...
middle Minoan
Minoan civilization
The Minoan civilization was a Bronze Age civilization that arose on the island of Crete and flourished from approximately the 27th century BC to the 15th century BC. It was rediscovered at the beginning of the 20th century through the work of the British archaeologist Arthur Evans...
and transitional material.
It is now believed that the town was submerged around 1000 BC. The area never reemerged, so it was neither built-over nor disrupted by agriculture.
Although eroded over the centuries, the town layout is as it was thousands of years ago. The site is under threat of damage by boats dragging anchors, as well as by tourists and souvenir hunters.
2009's fieldwork was largely to map the site. It is the first submerged town digitally surveyed in three dimensions. Sonar mapping techniques developed by military and oil prospecting organizations have aided recent work.
As of October 2009, four more fieldwork sessions are planned, also in collaboration with the Greek government as a joint project. Those sessions will do excavations.
Also working alongside the archaeologists, (from the University of Nottingham
University of Nottingham
The University of Nottingham is a public research university based in Nottingham, United Kingdom, with further campuses in Ningbo, China and Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia...
) are a team from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics
Australian Centre for Field Robotics
The Australian Centre for Field Robotics is dedicated to the research and teaching of concepts relating to intelligent autonomous systems, at The University of Sydney in NSW, Australia...
, who aim to take underwater archaeology into the 21st century. They developed several unique robots to survey the site in various ways.
One of the results of the survey was to establish that the town was the centre of a thriving textile industry (from the many loom weights found in the site).
Also many large pitharis pots (from Crete
Crete
Crete is the largest and most populous of the Greek islands, the fifth largest island in the Mediterranean Sea, and one of the thirteen administrative regions of Greece. It forms a significant part of the economy and cultural heritage of Greece while retaining its own local cultural traits...
) were excavated, also indictating a major trading port.
The research is to be published in full in 2014.