Age shall not wither her A 2,000-year-old shipwreck in the ancient harbour of Alexandria, and statues and ruins probably dating to the time of Cleopatra have been found around the submerged island of Antirhodos. Nevine El-Aref was one of the first to view the remarkable discoveries Excavations in Alexandria's Eastern Harbour have been underway for many years, but last week's discoveries have focused world attention on what is being regarded as the most important archeological find ever in the area. The ship is remarkable for being the first complete wreck discovered in the area: the rigging is still intact, and inside are well-preserved ceramics, remains of food, pieces of glass and jewellery. "The ship is located on the submerged island of Antirhodos in the central port between Qait Bey fortress to the north, the Silsila area on the right, and Mehattat Al-Ramley to the south," said Gaballa Ali Gaballa, secretary-general of the Supreme Council of Antiquities (SCA). "Apart from its excellent state of preservation, the ship is important because it is in the private royal harbour. A hole in the hull suggests it could have sunk after being rammed by another boat. The 35-metre-long and eight-metre-wide ship has been dated, using radio carbon samples, to between 90 BC and AD 130. "Some archaeologists claim the ship belonged to Cleopatra, but I don't think this is accurate because evidence points to a date some 130 years after the queen's death." Last week, Egyptian and international archaeologists, photographers, journalists and other members of the media were taken in small motor boats to the site of the wreck, some 300 to 500 metres from the shore. There, they boarded two French yachts equipped with TV monitors offering the visitors a clear view of the wreck, various statues and other architectural elements. Franck Goddio, director of the French archeological team working in the Eastern Harbour and at Abu Qir, described some of the artifacts as ceramics dating from the 3rd century BC to the 4th century AD. He said many of the remains were found in front of a platform where the palace used to be. He said thick sedimentation 4.5 metres below the surface was still obscuring a number of artifacts from the lst century AD. Other key finds included the remains of a 5th century BC wooden pier at one end of the island, the wooden remains of a cofferdam and a mortar platform dating to Ptolemaic times, which was discovered at the site of a royal palace. "This suggests that more than 2,000 years ago, part of the royal district on the island was levelled with mortar platforms before being carefully paved," Goddio said. Remnants of red granite columns bearing Greek inscriptions were also discovered on the original pavement. "This evidence indicates Antirhodos was strategically important and was inhabited before Ptolemaic times right through to the Caracalla period in the 3rd century AD," said Gaballa. After viewing the underwater activities, the visitors gathered on deck as statues were hoisted from the sea bed, viewed and photographed at close quarters, then returned to their watery locations. Among the remarkable black granite statues was one of the High Priest of Isis holding a canopic jar, its lid fashioned with the face of Osiris, and another of a smiling sphinx, one of two identified on the sea bed as most likely representing Cleopatra's father Ptolemy XII. Ibrahim Darwish, head of the underwater archaeology department (UAD), said: "We have found the foundations of Cleopatra's palace and her temple, which fit the descriptions of the Roman geographer Strabo, who came to Egypt in 25 BC and recorded his visits throughout Egypt. Near the platform next to the temple, we found crushed ceramics such as amphorae, vases and an oil lamp dating from the lst and early 2nd centuries AD. They were close to the remains of a pavement and construction blocks that had fallen into the harbour. This gives us an idea of when the landslide occurred." Zsolt Kiss, a Polish archaeologist and expert on Mediterranean archeology, said a comprehensive study has been carried out on the statues discovered on Antirhodos, as well as on the coast and the peninsula of the Poseidium. "The research shows there is a large black granite head that probably represents Octavius, who later became the emperor Augustus, a larger-than-life-size white marble statue depicting a Ptolemaic king in the form of the Greek god Hermes, a head of white marble representing the mother of the emperors Germanicus and Claudius, a large sphinx with the head of Horus and the god Thoth-Hermes depicted as an ibis." Kiss said the discoveries indicate that Ptolemaic Alexandria was less Hellenistic and more Pharaonic than had previously been thought. The statues will remain in their original positions while plans for an underwater museum are considered. "I would like visitors to be able to view this marvellous discovery in situ," said Gaballa. "It would be the first underwater museum of its kind in the world and I'm sure we can meet the challenge." One of the biggest problems facing the creation of an underwater museum is the amount of sediment that exists in this part of the Mediterranean. Action, however, is currently being taken to rectify this. Plans for the museum include a Plexiglass tunnel, which will enable visitors to walk through the subterranean site of the ancient royal quarters. Ambitious plans for the future are being drawn up in the wake of the discovery. "Strabo mentioned 13 sunken cities along the Northern Coast, so work is being planned in that area," Darwish said. "They were described as being situated between Agami and Saloum on the Libyan border, and the chances of us finding them are enormous." According to Darwish, Strabo also mentioned three sunken cities at Abu Qir, where Goddio and his team are already working. "They have already found the wreck of a Napoleonic fleet and have retrieved 230 gold and 100 silver coins, along with seven pieces of gold jewellery, including necklaces and three rings, one inscribed with the initial B," said Darwish. Shoe buckles, swords and parts of pistols used during the Battle of Abu Qir between the Napoleonic fleet and the British fleet commanded by Lord Nelson, have also been found. Studies in the Eastern Harbour started in 1996 as a joint mission between the European Institute of Underwater Archaeology and the SCA with sponsorship from the Hilti Foundation of Liechtenstein. Initial discoveries include the remains of the submerged royal quarter, among them columns, statues, blocks of granite, a sphinx, pavements and ceramics. The mission identified the island of Antirhodos, the site of one of Cleopatra's palaces, the Peninsula, where Mark Antony's palace the Timonium was located, the Poseidon sanctuary and the royal harbour of Cape Lochias. In 1997, the mission continued its underwater excavations and discovered the reefs at the entrance of the Magnus Portus and the ancient coastline, with its ruins revealing the inner palace (the basilica), temples and administrative buildings. Evidence was also discovered suggesting ships docked in Antirhodos before Alexandria was founded by Alexander the Great. Archeologists have previously assumed that the whole of the Ptolemaic city of Alexandria, which was founded by Alexander the Great and developed through to the Byzantine era when Constantinople became the capital of the Eastern Roman empire in the 4th century, lay beneath the modern city. Excavations at Kom Al-Dikka and other areas in central Alexandria have thrown up only isolated historical cameos, but these latest discoveries will, hopefully, enable historians and archeologists to trace a continuity from before the settlement of the ancient city, through its growth, development and decline. Gaballa says the widespread interest sparked by the recent discoveries will help him in his mission to get the area included in the UNESCO World Heritage List.
