Recherche par auteur > Carlo Beltrame

In the 2009, we have begun a project of study of the cargoes of marble or Roman period sunk in the Mediterranean. About ten shipwrecks have been investigated underwater; samples from their marble blocks have been analyzed at the Università IUAV of Venice.

Although the project is not completely concluded, it is already possible to make a review of this experience analyzing the potentialities, and also the limits, of the study of the circulation of the marble through the investigation of the shipwrecks.

The systematic sampling analysis has offered the possibility to identify associations of different marbles transported aboard the same ship, the digital photogrammetry has allowed to obtain precise 3D of the stone elements which have allowed to make precise calculations of the tonnage and 3D tentative reconstruction of the arrangement aboard. The reconstructions of the cargoes have permitted tentative reconstructions of the main dimensions of the vessels.

Limits in the research of these contexts do not lack. They often conserve very few objects over the marble. This implies that sometimes the datings are very generic and that the reconstruction of a route is not easy. Also, the remains of wooden hulls are very rare or are under huge blocks which cannot be removed. This implies that we still do not know so much about these vessels. In some regions, such as Greece, the informations about these wrecks are poor: the consequence is that the reconstruction of the routes of the marble is still preliminary.