Promising research in Mentor Shipwreck

Two ancient silver coins and one copper are the most important findings of the underwater archeological research that was conducted recently at the Mentor Shipwreck by the Ephorate of Underwater Archaeology, in the island of Kythira. As it is known, the ship carried the Parthenon marble sculptures from Athens to England via Malta, before it sunk in September 1802, near the port of Avlemonas, southwest of Kythira. The research findings are considered very important as the shipwreck is closely associated with the unfortunate story of the Parthenon marbles. Equally important is also the fact that the findings drawn up from the shipwreck comprise strong evidence of the crew's living conditions during that dark historical period. In the past, many researches were conducted at the shipwreck, although none of them revealed any clue about the ancient marbles. The story says that two years after the shipwreck, Lord Elgin paid a huge amount to a diving group to draw up the marbles from the ship, which partly led to his financial decline few years later. However, it is not clarified whether the divers drew up all the marbles from the seabed because apparently some pieces were missing from Elgin's list. The research, which took place between July 6th-15th and was financed by the Australian institute Kytherian Research Group, also revealed numerous objects that were used from the 10-member crew, like ceramic and porcelain vessels, decorating pieces and coins from that period, armors, guns and a hand compass. Future researches will hopefully give new evidence for the lost Parthenon marbles. The photo is from www.in.gr