Posted on 10/29/2015 3:22:11 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
Hailed as one of the top archaeological finds of 2015, the discovery was made by a joint Greek-American archaeological expedition in the small Fourni archipelago with an area of just 17 square miles. This is a collection of 13 islands and islets located between the eastern Aegean islands of Samos and Icaria.
"Surpassing all expectations, over only 13 days we added 12 percent to the total of known ancient shipwrecks in Greek territorial waters," Peter Campbell, of the University of Southampton and co-director from US based RPM Nautical Foundation, told Discovery News.
Fourni lies right in the middle of the major east-west crossing route, as well as the north-south route that connected the Aegean to the Levant. Ships traveling from the Greek mainland to Asia Minor, or ships leaving the Aegean for the Levant had to pass by Fourni.
"Ikaria and the west coast of Samos have no harbors or anchorages, so Fourni is the safest place that ships could stop in the area," Campbell said.
It was the first time that an underwater archaeological expedition was organized to the islands. Archaeologists from the Greek Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities and RPM Nautical Foundation worked with local sponge divers, fishermen, and free divers, and were more than surprised by the results.
Funding was provided by the Honor Frost Foundation, a UK charity that supports research in the eastern Mediterranean through an endowment from pioneer maritime archaeologist Honor Frost.
"In a typical survey we locate four or five shipwrecks per season in the best cases," Greek director George Koutsouflakis said.
"We expected a successful season, but no one was prepared for this. Shipwrecks were found literally everywhere."
(Excerpt) Read more at news.discovery.com ...
“Amenhotep” or Imenhotep, the medicine guy (the mummy)?
IF it truly was one man who did all that, he rightfully belongs in the ranks of such geniuses as Leonardo da Vinci, Newton, Einstein, etc...
Pythagoras of Samos, OTOH, is remembered and revered for his intellectual work with the right triangle (and little else).
In contrast, whoever built the pyramids not only had the same mathematical insights millennia earlier -- but he used those insights as a mere tool for achieving his grander goal of precision construction.
When I took my Texan mother-in-law to visit the replica of the Mayflower berthed in Plymouth, MA, she asked the on-board (female) docent, "Where did all the people crammed into this hold bathe?"
Replied the docent, (in supposedly-accurate period English) "Bathe? Why,Missus, no one of a sound mind would go willingly into the frigid waters of the Atlantic!"
M-I-L responded, " No I mean, 'Where did they wash'?"
To which the docent replied, "Warsh? We dinna warsh!"
~~~~~~~
I imagine that just walking on deck past the hatch to that hold would have any of us "moderns" grabbing our noses and heading for the rail... '-)
Outstanding!
Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.