The Archaeologist

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A massive ancient Greek city was discovered submerged in the Aegean Sea


BY THE ARCHAEOLOGIST EDITOR GROUP


The Aegean Sea has been home to the remains of a sizable Bronze Age city, according to the Greek Ministry of Culture, Education, and Religious Affairs. The settlement, which is 4,500 years old, spans 12 acres and is made up of towers, ceramics, tools, and other artifacts in addition to stone defense constructions, paved surfaces, walkways, and towers.

A group of researchers from the University of Geneva, the Swiss School of Archaeology, and the Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities made the discovery while looking for signs of the oldest community in Europe near Kiladha Bay on the Peloponnese Peninsula, south of Athens. The discovery of the old city is no less noteworthy even though they were hoping to find remnants that go back at least 8,000 years.

historical fortifications

According to Spero News, archaeologists discovered several enormous foundations in the form of a horseshoe near a wall line. These foundations are thought to have been towers used to protect the city. The ruins date back to the Bronze Age, although the construction is distinctive and was unheard of at the time. The foundations, according to Professor Julien Beck of the University of Geneva, are of "huge nature, unseen in Greece till now."

"Our discovery is significant in part because of its size. Over a stone base, there must have been a brick superstructure. The likelihood of discovering such walls underwater is really slim. The facility's exact size is unknown at this time. It is encircled by fortifications, but we don't know why "Beck threw in.

Countless Artifacts

Because of the number and caliber of the objects found, including pottery, red ceramics, stone tools, and obsidian blades from the Helladic Period, Beck indicated that the finding of the ancient city is significant (3200–2050 BC). In fact, they had been practicing at the neighboring Lambayanna beach when they saw pottery fragments, and it was by following the trail of relics that they eventually found the city.

The remains, which Beck has referred to as an "archaeologist's paradise," have yielded a total of more than 6,000 objects. The Cyclades archipelago's island of Milos, which has been inhabited since the third millennium, is thought to have provided the obsidian blades with their volcanic rock source.

According to the International Business Times, the study team is hoping to learn more about trade, seafaring, and daily life during the era thanks to the relics.

The walls that the researchers discovered are contemporaneous with the Giza pyramids, which were constructed between 2600 and 2500 B.C., with the Cycladic civilization (3200 to 2000 B.C.), and with the first Minoans on the island of Crete (2700–1200 B.C.), according to Spero News. They did, however, exist 1,000 years before the Mycenaean culture, which was the first significant Greek civilization (1650–1100 BC).

The team is hoping that additional research at and near Lambayanna will shed light on a complex web of coastal villages spanning the Aegean Sea.