For a third season already, the underwater squad of the combined Phanagorian archaeological expedition of the Institute of Archaeology of the Russian Academy of Sciences explores the remains of a wooden vessel found in 2012 in the flooded area of the harbour of the ancient Greek city of Phanagoria. Initially, the archaeologists dated what they thought was a merchant sailing ship between the VIII and XI centuries CE. The planking of the vessel was constructed according to the “shell-first” technique with the use of the peg-mortise-and-tenon joinery. The top timbers and futtocks were nailed to the planking with copper alloy nails. The length of the wreck is 16 m (the keel is preserved it its entirety), the width — 3.5 m. The ship burned before it sunk — its top part is charred.
However, this year's archaeological season yielded a discovery of a bronze ram found near the ship. The ram weighs approximately 15 kg. The images of a pentactinal star and a crescent — the royal signs of Mithridates VI Eupator — depicted on the ram suggest that the ship was a war galley (δίκροτος, bireme) and burned in 63 BCE during the events of the Phanagorian revolt (App. Mith., 108).
Here is the news video clip of the Krasnodar "Channel Nine" TV station.
Life should NOT be a journey to the grave with the intention of arriving safely in an attractive and well preserved body, but rather to skid in sideways, Merlot in one hand, Cigar in the other; body thoroughly used up, totally worn out, and screaming "WOO HOO, what a ride!
Sorry if I say so, but judging the size it's use seems to be more of a wave breaker then an actual war designed ram!
Sorry if Phanagoria doesnt't say anything to me but was it situated along the Black sea or a river?
By the way it is interesting to note that the star shaped symbol on the side of the ram/wavebreaker is also present on other found rams.
Quote:judging the size it's use seems to be more of a wave breaker then an actual war designed ram!
This is clearly a pretty small warship - at 16x3.5 metres it's about half the size of the Marsala ship. Actually it seems to be of similar length to some of the Mainz and Oberstimm river galleys, if a bit broader in the beam, and the ram/cutwater looks like it would fit a vessel of that size:
Perhaps a small liburnian, then, or a monoreme of some sort?
Oh ok I am getting the picture, thanks
What is quite interesting about tis find, is that presumably inhabitants of the Bosporan kingdom replicated Roman river vessels, ( unless the Hellenistics also such designs )
In the sea of Azov/Black Sea.
Well with a glance from google maps, there is indication that a lot of marshy lakes could have been in the region where it sunk.
Which would be ideal pirate hidouts, so maybe the ship sunk on an anti pirate mission.
Quote:presumably inhabitants of the Bosporan kingdom replicated Roman river vessels, ( unless the Hellenistics also such designs )
I would think it was a common Greco-Roman type - the Mainz ships were late Roman, but probably used the same basic galley pattern as all the various civilisations of the Mediterranean had been using for centuries. Mithridates was king of Pontus, and his ships would be very similar to Hellenistic and Roman designs. No doubt a shallow draught vessel like this would be very useful in the waters of the Euxine and Maeotic Lake, however, not to mention the rivers in the area.
I would guess that this craft is assumed to be one of the 'row boats' that Mithridates sent to rescue his daughter Cleopatra from the burning citadel, as described in the Appian passage that Ildar linked.
If anyone has access to the original Greek, perhaps they could check which word or term Appian uses for 'row boats', and we may perhaps have a name for this wreck.
This is amazing! are there any sketches of the find yet? It is hard to see the proportion of the whole vessel since the photos only capture parts of it it seems. Id love to learn more about roman naval construction.
Underhill Edge
Hand forged edged tools, blades, and functioning historical reproductions.
![[Image: 118F3001.jpg]](http://www2.rgzm.de/Navis/Ships/Ship118/Image/118F3001.jpg)
