By Tim Binnall
Underwater archaeologists exploring the shipwreck that once contained the mysterious Antikythera Mechanism have recovered the rather sizeable head of a marble Hercules sculpture. The retrieval of the piece reportedly occurred during an expedition to the downed vessel, which sits off the coast of Greece, in late May and early June. The endeavor at the wreck saw researchers relocate three 8.5-ton boulders that had previously made areas of the submerged ship inaccessible. With the massive rocks out of the way, divers were able to visit areas of the sunken vessel that had yet to be fully investigated.
The most eye-catching discovery made during the dive was undoubtedly a marble head that actually connects to the initially discovery of the shipwreck over a century ago. Archaeologist Lorenz Baumer, who heads the research project, marveled that the "most impressive" object is "twice lifesize, has a big beard, a very particular face and short hair. There is no doubt it is Hercules." What makes the find particularly noteworthy is that it would appear to be the missing piece from a statue of the demigod that was removed from the downed ship by sponge divers when they discovered the submerged vessel back in 1900.
Among the other objects recovered during the expedition were two human teeth, which will be subjected to genomic analysis in order to learn more about the individuals to whom they once belonged, various pieces of the ship's equipment, and the base of a different marble statue. "Each find helps us piece together more context in our understanding of the ship, its cargo, the crew and where they were from," explained Baumer, who noted that the wreck sits at a depth of approximately 160 feet and, as such, divers exploring the vessel could only do so for around 30 minutes before needing to return to the surface. The expedition at the 2,000-year-old shipwreck was the second in a series of extended annual dives that began in 2021 and are set to continue through 2025.