Saturday - June 08, 2013

New Old News About Old Old News

Guess they didn’t listen to the Word -
Therefore whosoever heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them, I will liken him unto a wise man, which built his house upon a rock:
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell not: for it was founded upon a rock.
And every one that heareth these sayings of mine, and doeth them not, shall be likened unto a foolish man, which built his house upon the sand:
And the rain descended, and the floods came, and the winds blew, and beat upon that house; and it fell: and great was the fall of it.
- Matthew 7:24

“Venice of Egypt” city was built on the silt of the end of the Nile Delta, slumped beneath the Mediterranean about 1400 years ago. Forgotten by history, found by archeaologists a decade ago, statues, stella, and treasure now being recovered.

A real-life Atlantis which sunk off the coast of Egypt nearly 1,200 years ago has now been brought back to the surface with the help of 3D.

The city of Heracleion, home of the temple where Cleopatra was inaugurated, was one of the most important trade centres in the Mediterranean area before it disappeared into what is now the Bay of Aboukir.

Heracleion was discovered in 2001, and after more than a decade of excavation, researchers have now been able to create a map depicting life in the ancient trade hub.

For centuries, Heracleion was believed to be a legend, much like the fabled city of Atlantis.

But 12 years ago, underwater archaeologist Dr Franck Goddio was searching the Egyptian coastline for French warships from the 18th century battle of the Nile, but instead stumbled across the treasures of the lost city.

After removing layers of sand and mud, divers discovered evidence of extraordinary wealth, painting a picture of what life was like in Heracleion, believed to have been at the centre of Mediterranean trade more than 1,000 years ago.

Archaeologists have found remains of more than 64 ships, buried in the seabed four miles off the coast of Egypt, the largest number of ancient ships ever to be found in one place.

As well as 700 anchors, the team have dug up gold coins and weights made from bronze and stone which would have been used in trade and to calculate taxation rates.

Before 331 BC, Thonis-Heracleion was a prosperous port of entry to Egypt and was used by all ships coming from the Greek world.

It was also home to the temple of Amun, which was a key element to the rites associated with the continuation of the dynasty.

Greek historian Herodotus told of a great temple built where the hero Herakles first arrived in Egypt, and wrote of Helen of Troy’s visit to Heracleion with her lover Paris before the Trojan war.

Thonis-Heracleion extended around the temple and a network of canals, which the researchers think gave it a lake-like appearance.

The ancient city was founded around the eighth century BC. However, it witnessed a host of natural catastrophes and finally sunk into the abyss around the eight century AD. Now located around 6.5km from the coast of Alexandria, for 1,200 years it lay undisturbed.

During his excavations, Goddio found objects showing the city’s glory, including huge statues, inscriptions, jewellery, coins, ritual objects and ceramics - all preserved under the sea and frozen in time.

A statement from Goddio’s website said: “The quantity and quality of the archaeological material excavated from the site of Thonis-Heracleion show that this city had known a time of opulence and a peak in its occupation from the sixth to the fourth century BC. This is readily seen in the large quantity of coins and ceramics dated to this period.

“The port of Thonis-Heracleion had numerous large basins and functioned as a hub of international trade. The intense activity in the port fostered the city’s prosperity.”

Goddio said that while they have discovered the city, it will take many years for them to uncover its secrets.

Known as Heracleion to the ancient Greeks and Thonis to the ancient Eygptians, the city was rediscovered in 2000 by French underwater archaeologist Dr. Franck Goddio and a team from the European Institute for Underwater Acheology (IEASM) after a four-year geophysical survey. The ruins of the lost city were found 30 feet under the surface of the Mediterranean Sea in Aboukir Bay, near Alexandria.
...
But despite all the excitement over the excavation, one mystery about Thonis-Heracleion remains largely unsolved: Why exactly did it sink? Goddio’s team suggests the weight of large buildings on the region’s water-logged clay and sand soil may have caused the city to sink in the wake of an earthquake.

Posted by Drew458     on 06/08/2013 at 10:37 AM   
Filed Under: • Archeology / Anthropology •  
• Comments (2) • Trackbacks(0)  Permalink •  

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