Like something out of a Hollywood film, scientists have made new discoveries at a Roman shipwreck known as the "Titanic of the ancient world."
Scientists with the Hellenic Ministry of Culture and Sports have been mapping the seafloor these past three weeks and deployed a diver wearing a high-tech "Exosuit" for a day to explore a Roman vessel that sank off the coast of the Greek island Antikythera more than 2,000 years ago. The researchers have returned with a bronze spear possibly belonging to a statue, pottery and metal fittings used to hold the wooden ship together, according to The Washington Post. These findings may indicate that there are more discoveries to be made, such as works of art or ship equipment, Angeliki Simossi, head of Greece's underwater antiquities department that coordinated the team, told The Associated Press.
The ship was originally discovered in the spring of 1900 when a diver named Ilias Stadiatis, who was originally looking for sponge, emerged from the water with the arm of a bronze statue. But that wasn't all the divers found. They also discovered a 2nd century B.C. device known as the Antikythera Mechanism. The gadget contained 40 bronze cogs and gears, and it was used by the ancient Greeks to monitor the cycles of the solar system. Many consider the Antikythera Mechanism "the world's oldest computer."
"It was a floating museum, carrying works from various periods; one bronze statue dates from 340 B.C, another from 240 B.C, while the Antikythera Mechanism was made later," Simossi told The Associated Press.
Evidence from the excavation suggests that the ship is "the largest ancient shipwreck ever discovered," according to senior team archaeologist Brendan Foley. "It's the Titanic of the ancient world," he told The Associated Press.
Scientific advancements have enabled the researchers to access the vessel submerged 164 feet under water. Divers compare the Iron Man-like "Exosuit" to wearing a submarine, and it allows them to dive 985 feet deep without going through the process of decompression, which is time consuming and can be dangerous.
In case you want to see part of the excavation in action before this thing gets turned into its inevitable Hollywood adaptation, there's a nice little video of the expedition.
In the video, you get to see the divers uncover an ancient Roman anchor, a bronze section of a bed and a bronze spear. And you don't even have to get your hair wet.
