Dokos shipwreck
Encyclopedia
Helladic period
Helladic is a modern archaeological term meant to identify a sequence of periods characterizing the culture of mainland ancient Greece during the Bronze Age. The term is commonly used in archaeology and art history...
, 2700-2200 BC.
The remains of the shipwreck are located about 15-30 meters underwater off the coast of southern Greece
Greece
Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe....
near the island of Dokos
Dokos
Dokos is also a village in the central part of the prefecture of Rodhopi, see Dokos , GreeceDokos is a small Greek island of the Argo-Saronic Gulf, adjacent to Hydra, and separated from the Peloponnese by a narrow strait called on some maps "the Hydra Gulf." It is part of the municipality of Ýdra ...
(ancient name Aperopia) in the Aegean Sea
Aegean Sea
The Aegean Sea[p] is an elongated embayment of the Mediterranean Sea located between the southern Balkan and Anatolian peninsulas, i.e., between the mainlands of Greece and Turkey. In the north, it is connected to the Marmara Sea and Black Sea by the Dardanelles and Bosporus...
. Dokos island is about 60 miles east of Sparta
Sparta
Sparta or Lacedaemon, was a prominent city-state in ancient Greece, situated on the banks of the River Eurotas in Laconia, in south-eastern Peloponnese. It emerged as a political entity around the 10th century BC, when the invading Dorians subjugated the local, non-Dorian population. From c...
, Peloponnese
Peloponnese
The Peloponnese, Peloponnesos or Peloponnesus , is a large peninsula , located in a region of southern Greece, forming the part of the country south of the Gulf of Corinth...
.Anastasi, pp. 1-2.
The ship itself is long gone, as everything biodegradable has been taken back by the sea. The remains at the sea floor of a cargo site of hundreds of clay vases and other ceramic items are evidence of the shipwreck. The four thousand year old ancient shipwreck was discovered by Peter Throckmorton
Peter Throckmorton
Peter Throckmorton , DMH, American journalist and underwater archaeologist is one of several pioneer underwater archaeologists frequently described as the Father of Underwater Archaeology. Throckmorton was a founding member of the Sea Research Society and served on its Board of Advisors until his...
on August 23, 1975.
The Dokos wreck site was extensively excavated in 1989-1992 by the Hellenic Institute of Marine Archaeology (HIMA). Archaeologist Dr. George Papathanasopoulos, President of HIMA, conducted this first ever full-scale excavation in Greece of an ancient shipwreck. Additional surveys were conducted and the Early Helladic period was confirmed.
Evidence
According to HIMA, the Cycladic potteryPottery
Pottery is the material from which the potteryware is made, of which major types include earthenware, stoneware and porcelain. The place where such wares are made is also called a pottery . Pottery also refers to the art or craft of the potter or the manufacture of pottery...
evidence is dated to around 2200 BC and the oldest known underwater shipwreck yet discovered. The clay
Clay
Clay is a general term including many combinations of one or more clay minerals with traces of metal oxides and organic matter. Geologic clay deposits are mostly composed of phyllosilicate minerals containing variable amounts of water trapped in the mineral structure.- Formation :Clay minerals...
pots appear to be merchandise from an ancient Argolida manufacturing facility. It is guessed that these were intended for trade to small coastal villages around the Gulf of Argos
Argos
Argos is a city and a former municipality in Argolis, Peloponnese, Greece. Since the 2011 local government reform it is part of the municipality Argos-Mykines, of which it is a municipal unit. It is 11 kilometres from Nafplion, which was its historic harbour...
and the Myrtoan Sea
Myrtoan Sea
The Myrtoan Sea is a subdivision of the Mediterranean Sea that lies between the Cyclades and the Peloponnesos. It is described as the part of the Aegean Sea south of Euboea, Attica, and Argolis. Some of the water mass of the Black Sea reaches the Myrtoan Sea, via transport through the Aegean...
. The cargo site consists of one of the largest collections of Early Helladic II pottery known. This Helladic pottery technology was even before the invention of the pottery wheel.
The pottery consisted of hundreds of ceramic pieces including cups, kitchenware, and urns. There were even seven different kinds of sauce boat
Sauce boat
A sauce boat, gravy boat or saucière is a boat-shaped pitcher in which sauce or gravy is served. It often sits on a matching plate, sometimes attached to the pitcher, to catch dripping sauce....
s. The bowls and sauce boats of the Early Helladic period were the commonest types found in southern and central Greece. There were many amphora
Amphora
An amphora is a type of vase-shaped, usually ceramic container with two handles and a long neck narrower than the body...
s found, as well as basins
Sink
A sink is a bowl-shaped plumbing fixture used for washing hands, for dishwashing or other purposes. Sinks generally have taps that supply hot and cold water and may include a spray feature to be used for faster rinsing...
, wide-mouthed jars, brazier
Brazier
A brazier is a container for fire, generally taking the form of an upright standing or hanging metal bowl or box. Used for holding burning coal as well as fires, a brazier allows for a source of light, heat, or cooking...
s, and baking trays.
Stone anchors were also found. These were merely boulders with holes drilled through them. There were also lead ingots used for trade found. The merchant ship had a wide variety of tableware and it is speculated it traded all over the region.
During the 1989 to 1992 HIMA excavation, the site produced more than 15,000 pottery sherd
Sherd
In archaeology, a sherd is commonly a historic or prehistoric fragment of pottery, although the term is occasionally used to refer to fragments of stone and glass vessels as well....
s and artifact
Artifact (archaeology)
An artifact or artefact is "something made or given shape by man, such as a tool or a work of art, esp an object of archaeological interest"...
s. They also found many millstone
Millstone
Millstones or mill stones are used in windmills and watermills, including tide mills, for grinding wheat or other grains.The type of stone most suitable for making millstones is a siliceous rock called burrstone , an open-textured, porous but tough, fine-grained sandstone, or a silicified,...
s at the site that is speculated was used as part of the ship's cargo or possibly as ballast
Ballast tank
A ballast tank is a compartment within a boat, ship or other floating structure that holds water.-History:The basic concept behind the ballast tank can be seen in many forms of aquatic life, such as the blowfish or argonaut octopus, and the concept has been invented and reinvented many times by...
. These artifacts and items were raised from the sea bottom and transported to the Spetses Museum. There they will be studied and placed into conservation.
Sources
- Anastasi, P. "Aegean Sea Floor Yields Clues to Early Greek Traders." The New York Times, January 2, 1989.
- Anzovin, Steven et al. Famous First Facts (International Edition), H. W. Wilson Company, 2000, ISBN 08242-0958-3
Further reading
- A Brief History of Underwater Archaeology in Greece
- Hudson, Kenneth et al. The Book of Shipwrecks. Macmillan, 1979, ISBN 0333220927