The Italian Ministry of Culture has accelerated a plan to study and recover a cargo threatened by trawling efforts off the coast of Monasterace. Archaeologists have located a shipwreck in the Ionian Sea, dating back to the 5th-4th centuries BCE, near the coast of Monasterace, a municipality in the province of Reggio Calabria. The vessel, whose identity remains unknown, carries a cargo of over three hundred amphorae, all of which, according to preliminary research, belong to the same chronological period.
Initial scientific assessments suggest that underwater archaeological investigations will yield new insights for reconstructing ancient Mediterranean trade routes and navigation patterns, with a particular focus on the production and distribution of wines originating from the Ionian coast of Magna Graecia.
Researchers believe the cargo will also aid in identifying the production centers of the amphorae themselves, as their shape appears to indicate ceramic workshops established in both the cities of Magna Graecia and on the island of Sicily.
This discovery was not fortuitous; it occurred in 2023 during preventive archaeological work necessitated by an environmental impact study for the installation of an offshore wind farm in that section of the Calabrian coast.
Advanced seabed survey and morphological characterization technologies were employed to detect the remains of the sunken vessel, utilizing an interdisciplinary team comprising underwater archaeologists, geologists, physicists, chemists, and marine biologists.
A technical report detailing the findings of these preliminary investigations was submitted to the Superintendence of Archaeology, Fine Arts, and Landscape for the province of Reggio Calabria and Vibo Valentia. This body, upon notifying the Carabinieri Unit for the Protection of Cultural Heritage responsible for the area, initiated the planned protective procedures.
This project, fully funded by the Ministry of Culture, features an internal working group within the Ministry itself dedicated to the design, recovery, conservation, and dissemination of information about the artifacts. External specialists are also integrated into this team. The project is coordinated by architect Roberta Filocamo, who serves as the sole Responsible for the Procedure (RUP), while the design and management of operations are entrusted to Alessandra Ghelli, an underwater archaeologist from the aforementioned Superintendence.
The operational group of the Superintendence also includes non-governmental specialists: marine archaeologists Laura Sanna and Francesco Tiboni from ASPS Servizi Archeologici, along with conservators and experts in the preservation of recovered archaeological materials.
Among the latter are Dr. Francesco Lia, a conservator responsible for aspects related to the technological infrastructure of the operational center and the management of findings during restoration and subsequent exhibition, and Professor Mauro La Russa, Director of the Department of Biological, Geological, and Environmental Sciences at the University of Calabria.
Equally crucial is the collaboration with specialized Carabinieri units: the Messina Diving Unit and the Cosenza Unit for the Protection of Cultural Heritage.
Beginning in 2025, photogrammetric surveys and expanded scientific documentation are underway—activities deemed essential for determining the true dimensions of the shipwreck and the precise arrangement of its cargo.
These investigations have confirmed the existence of two distinct clusters of amphorae, separated by an approximate distance of ten meters. Archaeologists hypothesize that this separation of the cargo was caused by human activity related to trawling, which partially altered the original disposition of the remains.
Given these circumstances, and although in-situ preservation is the preferred solution for underwater remains, as recommended by the 2001 UNESCO Convention on the Protection of the Underwater Cultural Heritage, the site’s specific configuration and the actual risk of further deterioration have led project leaders to adopt a different strategy.
The proposed solution involves the complete unloading of the entire cargo to ensure its long-term protection and preservation, followed by its restitution to the public through exhibition in museums or cultural centers.
Currently, efforts are focused on a detailed site survey, the creation of a high-precision photogrammetric model, systematic analysis of the amphorae, and the extraction of archaeological samples intended for scientific, archaeometric, and conservation research.
These analyses are fundamental to understanding the extent of material degradation, defining sequential recovery phases, and establishing the most appropriate restoration protocols for each type of ceramic. The Ministry of Culture has emphasized that all work is conducted under the direct supervision of the Superintendence, with the aim of maximizing the information extracted from the shipwreck, which promises to shed light on wine trade in ancient Magna Graecia.
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