Underwater excavations off the islands of Karpathos and Saria in the south-eastern Aegean Sea revealed several ancient shipwrecks dating back to the 7th century BC, the Greek Culture Ministry announced on Tuesday.
According to a statement by the Culture Ministry the international project launched in October 2025, a systematic, exploratory, underwater, archaeological research in the marine area of Karpathos, as part of the research program that has been underway since 2019 with the aim of mapping the underwater cultural heritage in the Southeast Aegean.
Karpathos, an island already mentioned by Homer and later inspiring Jules Verne, continues to fuel the spirit of exploration. During the first systematic underwater archaeological research on the island, Greek and foreign researchers dived into areas where visible remains of ancient Vrykountos and ancient Nisyros, two of the four cities that made up the famous “Karpathian tetrapolis” (Strabo, Geographia 10, 5.17), are preserved.
With more than 120 dives at depths ranging from 3 to 45 meters, in the wider area of Northern Karpathos and the island of Saria, the research team identified and recorded underwater cultural remains covering a period of over 26 centuries, from the Archaic period (late 7th century BC) to the first half of the 19th century AD.
Some of the shipwrecks were still loaded with amphoras, the double-handed pottery vases used to transport wine or oil – and one from an unspecified more modern era.
The most important findings include: – four ancient and one modern shipwreck, – commercial vessels, remains of ancient harbor facilities, – as well as more than twenty Byzantine era ship anchors, which, in combination with the rich residential and ecclesiastical remains of Tristomo, shed light on the importance of the area during Late Antiquity.
The ministry said the survey concentrated on areas where there are visible remains of ancient buildings at the sites of Vrykous and Nisyros, two of the four recorded ancient cities of Karpathos that were mentioned by the Roman-era Greek geographer Strabo.
More than 40 scientists took part in the survey, including ministry archaeologists and staff from the National Institute for Research, Mexico’s National Institute of Anthropology and History and the Νorwegian Maritime Museum.
pictures: Greek Culture Ministry
