Wednesday, May 26, 2010

Sunken treasure - divers recover the stunning artefacts of Cleopatra's palace

From Mail Online: Sunken treasure - divers recover the stunning artefacts of Cleopatra's palace

Divers in the waters off Alexandria today recovered stunning artefacts from the submerged ruins of a palace and temple complex belonging to Egyptian queen Cleopatra.
The international team is painstakingly excavating one of the richest underwater archaeological sites in the world, and retrieving amazing riches from the last dynasty to rule over ancient Egypt before the Roman Empire annexed it in 30BC.

Using advanced technology, the team is surveying ancient Alexandria's Royal Quarters, encased deep below the harbour sediment, and confirming the accuracy of descriptions of the city left by Greek geographers and historians more than 2,000 years ago.
Since the early Nineties the topographical surveys have allowed the team, led by French underwater archaeologist Franck Goddio, to conquer the harbour's extremely poor visibility and excavate below the seabed.

They are discovering everything from coins and everyday objects to colossal granite statues of Egypt's rulers and sunken temples dedicated to their gods.

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