Rostrums, helmets and sword recovered at the Battle of the Egadi Islands site

Two more rostrums have been recovered from the bottom of the Egadi. The precious artefacts were found thanks to the collaboration between the Superintendence of the Sea of the Sicilian Region, the Rpm nautical foundation and the divers of the Global underwater explorer.

Credit: RPM Nautical Foundation

During the research, which this year was also conducted with the oceanographic ship Hercules, further targets were discovered that enrich the rich database compiled in recent years. In the three weeks of investigation, sixty-eight Graeco-Italic amphorae, two Dressels, four Punic amphorae and four plates were identified.

To date, sixteen Roman and two Carthaginian rostrums have been found. In addition, two helmets of the Montefortino type, of the highest quality, have been identified and recovered, again in the same area, at a depth of eighty metres, by the divers of the Gue.

Credit: RPM Nautical Foundation

Credit: RPM Nautical Foundation

The two bronze helmets have a distinctive decoration in the shape of an animal at the top, which certainly belonged to the Roman army. Two pairs of paragnatids or metal cheek pieces have also been recovered. These two helmets, together with another of the Montefortino type recovered in recent days, are to be added to the twenty-two already recovered in previous campaigns.

But the real novelty of this year's research is the discovery made three days ago of an iron sword, about seventy centimetres in length with a blade five centimetres wide, which probably belonged to the soldiers of one of the two armies.

After study and restoration, the finds will enrich the exhibition at the Museum of the "Battle of the Egadi" in Favignana where, in a room set up with spectacular multimedia elements, the rostrums and helmets recovered in previous campaigns are displayed.

Source: TP24 [trsl. TANN, July 25, 2019]