Palinuro, Roman age anchor found

A Roman-era anchor has been located on the seabed of Palinuronot far from Capo Palinuro, a town in Cilento of great historical and landscape interest, located between the Gulf of Velia and the Gulf of Policastro. The discovery occurred during a control activity of submerged archaeological assets, carried out by the Carabinieri of the Cultural Heritage Protection Unit of Naples and of the Underwater Unit of Naples with the coordination of the Superintendency of Archaeology, Fine Arts and Landscape of Salerno e Avellino. The location is part of a broader monitoring and protection activity of marine sites, already detected since the early 2000s, within the scope of the “Archeomar” project, coordinated by the then Directorate General of Archaeology of the Ministry of Culture, with the aim of carrying out a census of the submerged archaeological assets present along the coasts of the regions of Campania, Basilicata, Puglia and Calabria.

To date, only some of the mapped sites have been the subject of scientific excavations, while for the Palinuro anchor there are currently no recovery actions planned, as it is most likely part of a wreck for which a significant investment would be required in order to carry out the scientific excavation under the jurisdiction of the ABAP Superintendency of Salerno and Avellino, under the coordination of the National Superintendency for Underwater Cultural Heritage. The lead anchor stump, which lies intact and embedded in the sandy seabed at 52 meters deepmust have belonged to a Roman ship that probably sank around 253 BCof which the other parts have not yet been identified. During the activities, accurate photographic and survey documentation was carried out, also thanks to the help of the ROV (remotely operated vehicle), a remotely controlled submarine, which is responsible for the evocative images that testify to the good state of conservation of the find.

The activity, an example of fruitful synergy between institutions responsible for the protection of cultural heritage, took place a few days after the illicit recovery of an ancient amphora, also carried out in the waters of Palinuro by a diver, widely documented in the press and on social media and whose position is already being examined by the authorities.”The protection activity – underlines the Superintendent Raffaella Bonaudo – ecarried out in collaboration with the Carabinieri of the Cultural Heritage Protection Unit of Naples and the Underwater Unit of Naples and according to the most advanced archaeological research methodologies, it allows for the recovery of valuable historical information on the dynamics of trade, sea routes and relations within the Mediterranean, information that can be dangerously compromised by ‘amateur’ if not illicit operations carried out by unauthorised individuals.“