The one atmosphere Exosuit allows hours of dive time with zero decompression time
the gear train were derived from centuries of celestial observations made by ancient astronomers, probably living in Mesopotamia and elsewhere around the eastern Mediterranean,” he said. “They recorded those sightings on clay tablets, and eventually that information was embraced by the Greek masters who fashioned the mechanism.” A fascinating aspect of the
mechanism, Foley says, “Is that it’s too complex to be a one-off prototype. It had to be one link in a chain of technical development. That means there must have been many more machines like it.” Interestingly, he adds, “No workshop or lone genius produced anything as complex in the thousand years following the fall of the Roman Empire. Clearly, he is hopeful that archaeology will fi nd more pieces to the puzzle that the Antikythera mechanism presents.
But this year researchers didn’t fi nd anything more related to the mechanism during their time in the fi eld. “It was a real long shot to fi nd more of this artifact because we don’t know from what part of the wreck sponge divers retrieved it,” Foley said. It’s believed that more than half of the mechanism is still missing.
The 2015 project will be planned in coming months.
“We fully expect to work this site for at least fi ve years,” Foley says, noting that the Greek government is committed, though the country remains in the grip of an economic crisis. So far, most of the project funding, in excess of $3 million, has come from private sources, the notable exception being support of the Hellenic Navy with ships and personnel.
As if the Antikythera wreck isn’t enough to keep everyone busy, team members are also interested
Below: a lifesize bronze statue, among many
others, recovered on earlier
in a second wreck about 800 feet (250m) to the south, where they’ve seen similar anchors and amphoras spread across the ocean fl oor.
expeditions. Carrying a high value cargo at a time when piracy was common, the
Antikythera ship may well have been traveling with another vessel that met a similar end.
The second wreck, “Looks like it’s from the same time period,” Foley said. Chemical analysis of the lead in their anchors will help the scientists determine whether or not the vessels are sister ships. Armed with modern technology and not a little tenacity, the researchers are diving into history on a ship many believe to be the richest ancient
wreck ever found. What of the second ship? We learn more one artifact at a time.
For more go to:
www.ant
www.antikythera.whoi.edu a.whoi.edu www.divermag.com 25
Page 1 |
Page 2 |
Page 3 |
Page 4 |
Page 5 |
Page 6 |
Page 7 |
Page 8 |
Page 9 |
Page 10 |
Page 11 |
Page 12 |
Page 13 |
Page 14 |
Page 15 |
Page 16 |
Page 17 |
Page 18 |
Page 19 |
Page 20 |
Page 21 |
Page 22 |
Page 23 |
Page 24 |
Page 25 |
Page 26 |
Page 27 |
Page 28 |
Page 29 |
Page 30 |
Page 31 |
Page 32 |
Page 33 |
Page 34 |
Page 35 |
Page 36 |
Page 37 |
Page 38 |
Page 39 |
Page 40 |
Page 41 |
Page 42 |
Page 43 |
Page 44 |
Page 45 |
Page 46 |
Page 47 |
Page 48 |
Page 49 |
Page 50 |
Page 51 |
Page 52 |
Page 53 |
Page 54 |
Page 55 |
Page 56 |
Page 57 |
Page 58 |
Page 59 |
Page 60 |
Page 61 |
Page 62