PAVLOPETRI, Greece - Race To Preserve World's Oldest Submerged Town

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The ancient town of Pavlopetri lies in three to four meters
of water just off the coast of southern Laconia in Greece.

(Credit:
Image courtesy of
University of Nottingham)








                                  Race To Preserve The World’s Oldest Submerged Town,



                                                           Pavlopetri, Greece






ScienceDaily
(May 12, 2009)

— The oldest submerged town in the world is about to give up its secrets — with the help of equipment that could revolutionise underwater archaeology.

The ancient town of Pavlopetri lies in three to four metres of water just off the coast of southern Laconia in Greece. The ruins date from at least 2800 BC through to intact buildings, courtyards, streets, chamber tombs and some thirty-seven cist graves which are thought to belong to the Mycenaean period (c.1680-1180 BC). This Bronze Age phase of Greece provides the historical setting for much Ancient Greek literature and myth, including Homer’s Age of Heroes.

Underwater archaeologist Dr Jon Henderson, from The University of Nottingham, will be the first archaeologist to have official access to the site in 40 years. Despite its potential international importance no work has been carried out at the site since it was first mapped in 1968 and Dr Henderson has had to get special permission from the Greek government to examine the submerged town.

Although Mycenaean power was largely based on their control of the sea, little is known about the workings of the harbour towns of the period as archaeology to date has focused on the better known inland palaces and citadels. Pavlopetri was presumably once a thriving harbour town where the inhabitants conducted local and long distance trade throughout the Mediterranean — its sandy and well-protected bay would have been ideal for beaching Bronze Age ships. As such the site offers major new insights into the workings of Mycenaean society.

The aim of Dr Henderson’s project is to discover the history and development of Pavlopetri, find out when it was occupied, what it was used for and through a systematic study of the geomorphology of the area establish why the town disappeared under the sea.

Dr Henderson, from the Underwater Archaeology Research Centre (UARC) in the Department of Archaeology, said: “This site is of rare international archaeological importance. It is imperative that the fragile remains of this town are accurately recorded and preserved before they are lost forever. A fundamental aim of the project is to raise awareness of the importance of the site and ensure that it is ethically managed and presented to the public in a way which is sustainable and of benefit to both the development of tourism and the local community.”

The submerged buildings, courtyards, streets, tombs and graves, lie just off a sandy stretch of beach close to an area popular with holiday makers and campers. Under threat from tourism and industry the remains are being damaged by boats dragging their anchors, inquisitive snorkelers on the hunt for souvenirs and the growth of marine organisms which are also taking their toll degrading the fragile 3,500 year old walls.

The survey, in collaboration with Mr Elias Spondylis of the Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities of the Hellenic Ministry of Culture, will be carried out using equipment originally developed for the military and offshore oilfield market but looks set to transform underwater archaeological survey and recording.

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Map of Laconia Greece

Laconia is a prefecture of south east Peloponnese, its capital is the town of Sparta.

Laconia is one of the most historic prefectures of Peloponesse.

Here is located the famous Sparta and the area of Mani.

The famous cave of Dyros is also located in Laconia.










Dr Henderson and his team will carry out a detailed millimeter accurate digital underwater survey of the site using an acoustic scanner developed by a major North American offshore engineering company. The equipment can produce photo-realistic, three dimensional digital surveys of seabed features and underwater structures to sub-millimetre accuracy in a matter of minutes.

Dr Henderson said: “The ability to survey submerged structures, from shipwrecks to sunken cities, quickly, accurately and more importantly, cost effectively, is a major obstacle to the future development of underwater archaeology. I believe we now have a technique which effectively solves this problem.”

Joining the team will be Dr Nicholas Flemming who discovered the site in 1967. The following year he led a team from the University of Cambridge who surveyed the area with hand tapes. The archaeological material — pottery, figurines, obsidian and small finds — they collected belong to the Early Helladic, Middle Helladic and Late Helladic period (c. 2800–1180 BC). A systematic assessment of the finds recovered at the time is currently being undertaken by Dr Chrysanthi Gallou at The University of Nottingham.

The project has received funding from the Institute of Aegean Prehistory (INSTAP), The University of Nottingham and the British School of Archaeology at Athens but it is still £10,000 short of the amount needed to carry out the main archaeological survey.

Four annual fieldwork seasons are planned. This May and June the team will carry out a full underwater survey. Between 2010 and 2012 there will be three seasons of underwater excavations. After a study season in 2013 the findings of Dr Henderson’s research will be published in 2014.


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Adapted from materials provided by University of Nottingham.
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                             PAVLOPETRI is in the Southeastern part
                             of Laconia

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                                                     The prehistory of Laconia


                                                           Chrysanthi Gallou








Bronze Age chamber tomb at Pavlopetri



This project aims at a) investigating patterns of prehistoric habitation and settlement patterns in southern Lakonia, and b) at assessing  trade and cultural interaction between southern Lakonia and other Aegean communities throughout prehistory (Neolithic to SubMycenaean). The project entails the (re)study and publication of the prehistoric material from the British Surveys (1907/ A.J.B. Wace and F.W. Hasluck, 1936-9/H. Waterhouse and R. Hope Simpson) on the Malea peninsula and of the British explorations at the submerged Bronze Age site at Pavlopetri (1968/ A. Harding, G. Cadogan and R. Howell).

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View of the Bronze Age site of Asopos:
Bozas, Laconia
                                                                        
                   
                                                                         View of the now submerged site at Pavlopetri
                                                                          in south-eastern Laconia

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Chrysanthi Gallou

 



Personal Details Publications   
 


Research Fellow

School of Humanities, Faculty of Arts

Role(s): Researcher
 Staff listing 

--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
 
Contact

Room B44 Archaeology & Classics

University Campus
NG7 2RD
T: 0115 8468832
F: 0115 9514812

chrysanthi.gallou@nottingham.ac.uk 

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Past research






                                                The Mycenaean Cult of the Dead 

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Current research





                          1. The Mycenaean chamber tombs at Epidaurus Limera, Laconia





I am currently working on the study and publication of the major corpus of archaeological material from the Mycenaean chamber tombs at Epidaurus Limera in south-eastern Laconia, Greece, one of the few sites that flourished from the Late Helladic I (ca. 1680 BC) until after the collapse of the Mycenaean palatial administration (ca. 1060 BC).



My research aims at

1) assessing aspects of trade and cultural interaction between Epidaurus Limera and other communities of the Aegean throughout the Mycenaean period,

b) examining the creation and subsequent history of the new Mycenaean mortuary tradition in relation to the Middle Helladic past and the newly introduced elements,

c) reconstructing the process of invention of tradition and identity in Early Mycenaean communities and

d) frame a hermeneutic model for the archaeological study of the role of memory and tradition in the formation of cultural identity in prehistoric societies.






2. The prehistory of southern Laconia: settlement patterns and interaction






This project aims at

a) investigating patterns of prehistoric habitation and settlement patterns in southern Lakonia, and

b) at assessing  trade and cultural interaction between southern Lakonia and other Aegean communities throughout prehistory (Neolithic to SubMycenaean).

The project entails the (re)study and publication of the prehistoric material from the

British Surveys (1907/
A.J.B. Wace and F.W. Hasluck,

1936-9/H.
Waterhouse and R. Hope Simpson)

on the Malea peninsula and of the British explorations at the submerged Bronze Age site at Pavlopetri

(1968/
A. Harding,
G. Cadogan and
R. Howell).



http://www.nottingham.ac.uk/archaeology/research/scape_laconiaprehistory.php

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                                                                    Pavlopetri:



                                   the preservation of the oldest submerged town in the world
 






May 11, 2009
by Kathryn Hadley


Pavlopetri lies three to four metres beneath the sea off the coast of southern Laconia in Greece. With parts of its ruins dating back to at least 2800BC, it is considered the oldest submerged town in the world. Some of the town’s buildings, courtyards, streets, chamber tombs and some 37 cist graves, from the later Mycenaean period (c.1680-1180 BC), have been preserved almost intact. The site is, nevertheless, in need of active efforts to preserve and document what remains of this period of Greek history. The coast of southern Laconia is a popular tourist destination and boats dragging anchors, snorkelers and the growth of marine life are a constant threat to the 3,500 year old walls.

The University of Nottingham announced, today, May 11th, the beginning of a project led by Dr Jon Henderson, from the Underwater Archaeology Research Centre (UARC) in its Department of Archaeology, to undertake a full underwater survey of the site. No work has been carried out on the site since it was first mapped using hand tapes, in 1968, by a team from the University of Cambridge. Dr Henderson is the first archaeologist to have official access to the site in 40 years.

Dr Henderson described one of the aims of the project:


‘This site is of rare international archaeological importance. It is imperative
that the fragile remains of this town are accurately recorded and preserved
before they are lost forever. A fundamental aim of the project is to raise
awareness of the importance of the site and ensure that it is ethically managed
and presented to the public in a way which is sustainable and of benefit to both
the development of tourism and the local community.’

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The power of the Mycenaean civilisation was largely based on their control of the sea. However, archaeological studies have, to this date, mostly focused on better known inland palaces and citadels and their remains a lack of knowledge about the workings of harbour towns during the period. It is believed that Pavlopetri, in particular, with its sandy and well-protected bay, was an important harbour where local and long-distance trade was conducted throughout the Mediterranean.

The current project will research the history and development of the harbour, when it was occupied and what it was used for. A study of the geomorphology of the area will also seek to provide an insight into why the town disappeared under the sea. The first detailed digital underwater survey of the site will be carried out this month and in June, using an acoustic scanner which can produce three-dimensional digital surveys. There will be three further sessions of underwater excavations between 2010 and 2012. A study session is planned for 2013 and the results of the research are due to be published in 2014. Dr Nicholas Flemming, who first discovered the town in 1967, is also involved in the current project.

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The Mycenaean civilisation was the first Greek-speaking civilisation, named after Mycenae, its most important site, in the Peloponnese of southern Greece. The population was ruled by a number of independent rulers, who each had their own stronghold.

They notably conquered Crete in approximately 1450 BC, where they adapted the Linear A script to write their own language (Linear B). The Mycenaean period is also referred to as the Bronze Age period in Greek history and notably provided the historical setting for a considerable part of Ancient Greek literature and myth, including Homer’s Age of Heroes.




Pictures: above: outline of a building;

middle picture: one of the 37 cist graves

(University of Nottingham)

[Bianca]

One would think that they would pinpoint the location of such an "important place"......


NOTHING.....


I finally found this @ GOOGLE, UK:







Pavlopetri


On the eastern part of Pounta, across the islet of Petri (PavloPetri), lies the beach with the same name. This beach was affected by sand movements in the last few years and the effect is that it is now shorter with more shallow waters. The effect of sand movements was so intense that it is not almost possible to walk to Pavlopetri instead of swim there. This sand movement has possibly covered part of the sunken ancient underwater settlement that could be seen when swimming there as well as the old cart roads.

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This seems to be the best I can come up with.....

Pavlopetri seems to be off Pounta, off the mainland, between it and the island of Elafonissos.

Sorry, all the maps I could find were in Greek.



If anyone can dig up more information I, for one, would be very grateful.

I would love to know more.

[Bianca]

OK, one more try:

GOOGLE.it - let's see what I come up with. 

Too bad I don't speak Greek.

Where's Nikas when you need him?

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Pavlopetri


Between Lake Strogylli /Pounta  Beach and the island of Elafonisos opposite, N.C Flemming of the British Institute of the Oceanography discovered in 1967 a submerged settlement of the Bronge Age.

This is referred to as Pavlopetri after the small island of Pavlopetri which is some 200 meters from the shore and forms part of the settlement.

The settlement lies 2-3 meters under the water between the shore and Pavlopetri island, while some of the tombs from its cemetery may be seen carved on the rock on the shore.
(Picture above)

The site was surveyed in 1968 by a Cambridge Underwater Exploration Group expedition led by R. C. Jones. The results of the survey were reported in 1969 by A. Harding, G. Cadogan and R. Howell.

 
The expedition also reported a small arched Roman bridge (see a map and a photograph) that was crossing the rock-cut channel which connects Lake Stroggyli with the sea and which was presumably used in ancient times to draw salt water into the lake for evaporation. Unfortunately the Roman bridge does not exist anymore, apparently it was destroyed (!) immediatelyy after the expedition visited the site. The bridge suggests the existence of a road of importance in ancient times which probably went along the edge of the bay to what is now Elafonisos.



http://www.cs.bham.ac.uk/~gkt/www/neapoli.html

[nikas]

I don't understand what kind of info do you want for PAVLOPETRI? Location or details about Archeological finds and historical finds.

Here is it's location.

http://maps.google.com/maps?f=q&source=s_q&hl=en&geocode=&q=lakonias&sll=38.873929,26.674805&sspn=8.703138,13.359375&ie=UTF8&ll=36.516121,22.990866&spn=0.008778,0.0212&t=h&z=16

or google earth:
http://cid-23dd8af575e62b9c.skydrive.live.com/self.aspx/Public/pavlopetri.kmz

Let me know what else do you need.