Greece’s Culture Ministry has announced significant discoveries at the famed Antikythera shipwreck, shedding new light on the maritime history of the region and the lives lost in the ancient disaster.
The finds, made during recent excavations led by an international team, include human remains, offering a poignant connection to the shipwreck’s victims, and evidence of a second shipwreck, expanding the site’s historical significance beyond the renowned Antikythera Mechanism.
The Antikythera shipwreck, discovered over a century ago near the island of Antikythera, has yielded numerous artifacts, including the intricate Antikythera Mechanism, often referred to as the world’s first analog computer.
The latest round of excavations, conducted between May and June, focused on the eastern edge of the site, utilizing remote-controlled drones and 3D modeling software.
Among the finds were bone fragments belonging to at least one victim of the shipwreck. This rare discovery of human remains provides crucial insights into the lives of those who perished in the disaster and opens avenues for further research into their identities and origins.
Additionally, fragments of Byzantine-era ceramics were unearthed at a higher elevation, suggesting another, smaller vessel wrecked nearby centuries later.
This indicates the site’s significance for maritime history across different eras, potentially offering a broader understanding of trade routes and maritime activities in the region.
The Antikythera shipwreck recently gained attention due to its connection to the film “Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny.”
In recent weeks, also, astronomers at the University of Glasgow who analyzed gravitational waves, determined the likely number of holes in one of the device’s broken rings, providing strong evidence that the ring tracked the Greek lunar year.
The finds adds to decades of research confirming the device’s use for predicting eclipses and calculating the positions of celestial bodies.
The Glasgow team focused on a ring known as the calendar ring, analyzing X-ray images taken in 2020.
New finds linked to Antikythera mechanism – iefimerida.gr
