Ancient Roman shipwrecks
- On 23/11/2017
- In Underwater Archeology
By Jack Moore - Yahoo News
The Egyptian government announced Tuesday that archaeologists have uncovered three sunken, millennia-old shipwrecks off the country's north coast. The wrecks, filled with ancient artifacts, are Roman and date back when the empire spread over Europe and North Africa.
Inside the wrecks, archaeologists discovered three gold coins that date to the time of ancient Rome’s first emperor, Augustus, also known as Augustus Caesar Octavian.
They also found a head sculpture carved into crystal, remains of pottery and large pieces of wood, potentially from the ship itself. The discoveries were made off the coast of the northern city of Alexandria, specifically in its Abu Qir Bay.
Augustus succeeded his infamous great-uncle Julius Caesar following the latter's assassination and brought peace and stability to the Greco-Roman world in a lengthy rule of 40 years.