Police officers on a routine dive in Italy recently made an unusual discovery: ancient Roman artifacts resting on the seabed, 2,000 years after they were lost. The artifacts were uncovered off the coast of Porto Rotondo in Sardinia, an Italian island in the Mediterranean Sea.
The discovery was made by police officers based in Olbia, Sardinia, who were conducting an underwater safety operation. They initially spotted a piece of broken terracotta, which prompted them to return for a second dive. During the second dive, they discovered three largely intact terracotta artifacts, including a transport basin, as well as other minor items.
The artifacts appear to date to the period spanning the fall of the Roman Republic and the beginning of the Roman Empire. According to officials, a preliminary analysis suggests that the items may date back to a time frame between the second half of the 1st century B.C. and the 1st century A.D., with a potential origin area linked to Lazio, Campania, or the Iberian Peninsula.
The police divers have made the artifacts available to the competent Archaeological Superintendent, who will examine them further to determine their precise age and origin. Specialists will also investigate whether the vessels came from a larger archaeological site, and whether more artifacts await discovery.
This discovery is not the first of its kind in Italy. Earlier this year, authorities announced the discovery of a Roman merchant shipwreck still carrying its cargo of amphorae in the Ionian Sea. The shipwreck was dated to the late Imperial era, which spanned roughly 284 A.D. to 641 A.D.
NTC Report coverage is based on reporting from the original publisher.
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