Casual bathers between Torre Borraco and San Pietro in Bevagna on the Gulf of Taranto [Puglia] found the remains of a Roman cargo boat two hundred metres from the shore on Tuesday. They immediately alerted the authorities and now experts are examining the wreck.
The boat, which was lying on its base four hundred metres below the surface, dates to the first or second century BC. Its hull has a convex form and was probably used for cargo storage. Amphorae of the kind which would have contained oil or wine have also been discovered near the wreck. Historians think that the boat would have been carrying cargo to the Roman Empire鈥檚 African outposts.
Taranto was founded as a Greek colony in the eighth century BC but was conquered by the Romans in 272 BC . It was an important port for them and they connected it to the Via Appia.
The area around the wreck has been secured.
