Pavlopetri
36°30′59″N 22°59′16″E / 36.51625542697151°N 22.987748828807526°E
The city of Pavlopetri (Greek: Παυλοπέτρι), in Vatika Bay underwater off the coast of southern Laconia in Peloponnese, Greece, is about 5,000 years old, making it the oldest submerged city known in the world. Pavlopetri is unique in having an almost complete town plan, including streets, buildings, and tombs.
Name
Pavlopetri (or Paulopetri) literally translates to Paul's stone and is a direct reference to
Discovery and location
Discovered in 1967 by Nicholas Flemming and mapped in 1968 by a team of archaeologists from Cambridge, Pavlopetri is located between the islet of Pavlopetri and the Pounta coast of Laconia on the Peloponnese peninsula. The site is northeast of the village on the island of Elafonisos. The archeological site as well as the islet and the surrounding sea area are within the region of the Elafonisos Municipality, the old "Onou Gnathos" peninsula (according to Pausanias). While Pavlopetri was inhabited, Eflafonisos would have been connected to the Peloponnese by the means of Pavlopetri. Since then the sea level has risen and earthquakes have pushed the city down, making the gap between Elafonisos and Peloponnese larger. In Thucydides' "History of the Peloponnesian War", it is suggested that Elafonisos was connected to Peloponnese. There are also incisions on the north side of Elafonisos in the rock that were used for transporting goods with carts.[2]
Origins
Originally, the ruins were dated to the
Exploration
The fieldwork of 2009 was largely to map the site. It is the first submerged town digitally surveyed in three dimensions.[9] Sonar mapping techniques developed by military and oil prospecting organizations have aided recent work.[10][11] The city has at least 15 buildings submerged in 3 to 4 metres (9.8–13.1 ft) of water. The newest discoveries in 2009 alone cover 9,000 m2 (2.2 acres).[9][12]
Four more fieldwork sessions were planned in October 2009, in collaboration with the Greek government as a joint project aimed at excavations. Also working alongside the archaeologists (from the University of Nottingham)[13] are a team from the Australian Centre for Field Robotics, who aim to take underwater archaeology into the 21st century. Several unique robots have been developed to survey the site in various ways. One of the results of the survey was to establish that the town was the centre of a thriving textile industry (from the many loom weights found in the site). Also many large pitharis pots (pottery jars) from Crete were excavated, indicating a major trading port.[14]
In 2010, a team from the Hellenic Centre for Maritime Research used the
Noteworthy discoveries
This article may need to be rewritten to comply with Wikipedia's quality standards. (January 2024) |
During excavation in the 2011 season, the team from
Dangers to the ruins
The site has faced many problems since its discovery in 1967. One of these problems is sediment shifting and damaging the ruins. Small boats travel above the site and move sediment on the
Preservation efforts
After Pavlopetri gained more attention after the research done from 2009-2013 and it was announced that it is in danger, many people decided to get together and try to stop the pollution and damage that was being done. One thing that they are trying to stop is the approving of a certain port regulation that would let large ships anchor in Vatika Bay. They would like to create a safety net of sorts made out of
UNESCO site
The city of Pavlopetri is part of the underwater cultural heritage as defined by the UNESCO in the
In popular culture
- The work of the British-Australian archaeological team was assembled in an hour-long BBC documentary video, "City Beneath the Waves: Pavlopetri", broadcast by BBC Two in 2011.[18]
- The site and its history are featured in the "Secrets of the Sunken Empire" episode of the Science Channel TV program Unearthed (season 8, episode 7), originally broadcast on January 3, 2021.[19]
- The ancient site and its underwater mapping is featured in "Drain the Oceans: Legends of Atlantis" (season 1, episode 5), by National Geographic airing on June 25, 2018.[20]
See also
- Akrotiri (prehistoric city) - A Minoan Greek city buried by volcanic eruption
- Atlit Yam - A submerged Neolithic village off the coast of Atlit, Israel
References
- ^ Nick Kampouris (2019-10-11). "Pavlopetri, Greece's Most Ancient Underwater City". Greek Reporter.
- ^ )
- ^ a b c d e f "The Pavlopetri Underwater Archaeological Project - The University of Nottingham". www.nottingham.ac.uk. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
- ^ "World's oldest submerged town dates back 5,000 years". Paleontology & Archaeology. e! Science News. 2009-10-16. Retrieved 2009-10-24.
- ^ Helena Smith (2009-10-16). "Lost Greek city that may have inspired Atlantis myth gives up secrets". The Guardian.
- ^ Leadbetter, Russell. In praise of... underwater archaeology. The Herald 11 Oct 2011
- ^ Henderson, Jon (2009-05-14). "Race to Save World's Oldest Underwater Town". Green Room Blog. WetSand.com. AlphaGalileo. Retrieved 2009-10-24.
- ^ Henderson, Jon (2009-05-12). "Race to preserve the world's oldest submerged town". AlphaGalileo. Retrieved 2009-10-24.
- ^ a b Henderson, Jon (2009-05-12). "Race to preserve the world's oldest submerged town". University of Nottingham. Archived from the original on 2011-11-23. Retrieved 2009-10-24.
- ^ BBC News "Sea gives up secrets to experts", 16 October 2009; accessed 16 October 2009.
- ^ BBC News "Pavlopetri: A window on to Bronze Age suburban life", 8 October 2011
- ^ Henderson, Jon (2009-10-16). "World's oldest submerged town dates back 5,000 years". University of Nottingham. Archived from the original on 2012-07-07. Retrieved 2009-10-24.
- ^ "Jon Henderson - The University of Nottingham". Nottingham.ac.uk. 1998-09-27. Retrieved 2012-02-22.
- ^ "City Beneath the Waves: Pavlopetri". BBC. Retrieved 22 February 2012.
- ^ a b c "Pavlopetri". World Monuments Fund. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
- ^ "Ballast water management: stopping the spread of invasive species by ships". Clear Seas. 2021-10-04. Retrieved 2022-12-09.
- ^ UNESCO, convention on the protection of underwater cultural heritage
- ^ "City Beneath the Waves: Pavlopetri"
- ^ "Secrets of the Sunken Empire" TV Maze
- ^ "Drain the Oceans: Legends of Atlantis"IMDB