Divers check out the treasures and artifacts from the wreckage of a merchant ship that sank in the tiny Greek island of Antikythera; some of them are showcased at the Antikenmuseum Basel. (Photo : Facebook/Return to Antikythera Official Page)
Treasures that give clues to an ancient civilization are on display at the Basel Museum of Ancient Art in Switzerland.
Fascinating cargo recovered from the wreckage of a hefty merchant ship that sank in the tiny Greek island of Antikythera in first century B.C.has sparked the curiosity of the exhibit-going public. The "sunken treasure" exhibition will run until March 27, 2016 at Antikenmuseum.
There have been multiple dives since sponge divers first combed through the shipwreck site in 1900. Even the late French undersea explorer Jacques-Yves Cousteau, dived into the wreck.
Among the treasures and artifacts excavated from the wreck site were a bronze armrest, ceramics, tableware, vases, coins, a pawn from an ancient board fame, giant bronze spear and other artifacts, plus components of the ship itself. Of special interest to archeologists and historians was the astronomical instrument, the Antikythera mechanism.
More secrets may unravel from the remains of the age-old shipwreck, according to the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution.
The Antikythera wreckage items that have been uncovered to date are regarded as precious remnants of ancient Greek civilization. They were first showcased at the National Archaeological Museum in Athens.
Visitors of the Basel exhibition may find the explanation on why the merchant ship that sank off the Island of Antikythera near Crete was traversing Rome from Greece to Rome.
The special exhibition will also offer insights related to the history of underwater archaeology, according to a press release in the website of the Antikythera Mechanism Research Project.
The Basel exhibition is expected to generate a positive response in highlighting the culture and history of Greece, in much the same way Athens' National Archaeological Museum in Athens turned out to be a resounding success.
