There are always people looking around the world for hidden treasure and it turns out that right off the bay of Aboukir, in Egypt, divers found just that. They uncovered a spectacular treasure, that had been lost for centuries.
Drowned in the depths of the ocean, they found the lost city of Heracleion, an ancient city which dates back to the 6th century B.C. But what’s most impressive are the artefacts it contains and the stories it tells through their existence!
26. The Lost City
This wasn’t just a random city though, researchers believe the city Thonis-Heracleion was an important port between the Mediterranean and the Nile. Once a busy and bustling city centre, it held much valuable information.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
With that information also came a wealth of historic treasure. You might expect that the city would be dilapidated but it has a stunning beauty still associated with it. Take a look at the following photos of the lost city and see for yourself!
25. The City of Heracleion
This photo is a recreation made by researchers to represent how the lost city looked, at its peak. It was the place. full of mystery and a deep history attached to it. This is the spot where the hero Heracles arrived for the first time in Africa.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Not only that, but it is also where Helen and Paris of Troy sought refuge while running away from their enemies. We are so lucky to have finally found it unharmed after so much time, even though it is now underwater. What they took out to the surface it’s incredible!
24. It’s Ending
The city used to be an important connection between Egypt and the Mediterranean Sea. It is believed that a devasting earthquake, completely ruined the city and throughout the years the city slowly slipped into the sea.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
While this might seem strange to our modern ears. It is a thing to note that the city was created, mostly on the banks of the sea with zero protection from the elements and basic to no structural support for all of its buildings.
23. A Huge Discovery
It is believed by scientists that the Egyptian city got lost under the sea sometime around the 8th century CE. Nobody is quite sure as to the exact date of the sinking or how many lives might have been lost.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
For hundreds of years, there were only rumours about its existence and without any evidence of where it was placed, it stayed undisturbed for years. That was until this happened…
22. Finding The Lost City
The only clues scientists had were represented by random references in ancient writings, so finding the lost city was only a dream at that point. But in 2000, a team of divers led by one of the greatest archaeologists of our times finally found what would soon be a massive discovery!
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
As you can see in the image, they uncovered a host of historic statues, completely intact. It is a great wonder, even through an earthquake and centuries under the sea, these marvellous stone statues have managed to stay in one piece!
21. The Sunken City
Franck Goddio is the lucky man who excavated the sunken city. The entire operation lasted more than 13 years and once you’ll see all the wonders they took out of the water you’ll be amazed! All those years of hard work were finally paying off.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Naturally, you can assume it wasn’t easy work. After discovering more than 700 useless anchors and 60 shipwrecks in the bay, but just as everyone was losing hope they finally found the lost city of Heracleion.
20. Time To Take It Out Of The Water
Nobody knew exactly what to expect but what the saw was surreal and unbelievable. Flawlessly preserved huge statues of gods and goddesses, treasures of gold, detailed tablets and temples, lay perfectly on the seafloor.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
It wasn’t just the scale of the statues that stunned the researchers but also the number of artefacts they had found! Usually, many historians are lucky if they get to uncover one or two historical items but in Heracleion, they unearthed hundreds.
19. Massive and Amazing Statues
It is easy to say that everyone was in a state of bliss, shock and excitement but the real test was yet to come. Now, that they had found this city, the real task of bringing it out the water began.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
After behind hidden away for centuries, the city was slowly seeing the sun again. Ships built with delicate crane systems were called in and piece by piece the remnants of Heracleion started surfacing.
18. Huge Discovery
The plan was to remove the bulk of the items by the crane and to start categorizing the items. Each item had to be carefully handled, labels and detailed to ensure that this huge discovery was managed in a way which allowed it to shine.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
With the news of the discovery revealed, many museums and researchers were already placing competitive bids to get their hands on the artefacts, so they could start studying the secrets of this 6th-century city.
17. Visiting the City
With a bit of luck and years of hard work, diver Franck Goddio had done what many had only yearned to do. He had uncovered the underwater city and brought its treasures, history and story to the world’s attention.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
In this photo, he examines a hand-carved statue of a pharaoh. The detail on the item is mind-boggling, as you can clearly still see the textural groves added around the body. It was found near the large undersea temple and happened to be 16 feet tall.
16. Piecing Artifacts Back Together
The practical reason why many were so shocked to see the sunken artefacts was because researchers were well aware that the city was hit with a major earthquake. This led many to assume that most of its knowledge and structure would have been destroyed, centuries ago.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
But rather than the rubble, everyone was expecting to see they found fully intact statues. Even the pieces which were found broken, were in good enough condition to be reconstructed. Like this stele from the 2nd century, B.C. It was found broken into 17 pieces but they had all the correct parts to recreate the item.
15. A Massive Statue
Near the big temple of Heracleion, the divers found a red granite statue which weighed 4 tons. Discoveries like this continued on for months and divers found many and more other statues.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Exploring the lost city, the divers could not believe their eyes as they looked upon all the well-preserved artefacts. If you think this photo is amazing, you definitely need to see the next one!
14. Dark Stone
The mythical city which was once swallowed and buried under the Mediterranean Sea was revealing countless information to archaeologists. From not only the religion that was followed at the time but details on day-to-day life.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
This particular statue was different from others, it was carved in dark stone, while most status at the time was created out of white stone. Researchers believe this impressive statue represents a Graeco-Egyptian queen. They also found a weird plaque and you won’t believe what it is!
13. Buried for 1200 Years
In this picture, Diver Franck Goddio shows how massive this inscribed stele is. Why is this stele important you may ask? Well, it unveils the history of a time that most researchers thought was lost to us
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Written in the stele, we now know that Emperor Nectanebo I had ordered to have it built about 370 years B.C. That means it had been sitting underwater for more than 1200 years. Even with all that, the item is a remarkable condition.
12. Huge Statue
The discoveries inside the sunken city seem without end. Divers uncovered a buried statue head inside the base of the seafloor. It later turned out to be the missing piece to a full body, already found on the site.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Researchers concluded that the statue was made of pure red granite statue and measured more than 5 meters. This information also allowed historians to understand the scale of Heracleion.
11. A Gold Plaque
While statues are not uncommon in Ancient Egyptian cities, everyone was perplexed when this gold plague was unearthed. As you can see in the picture, the item still shines even after spending 1200 years buried among the sand.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Uncovered in the southern part of the lost city, the plaque had Greek text written on it. It looks like it was a signature for foundation deposits made by King Ptolemy III (246-222 B.C.) who wanted this area to be built.
10. The God Osiris
This eerie picture shows a bronze statue of the god Osiris, who bears a crown to show his power. Taking a closer look at it, you can see there are gold sheets on the eyes of the statue.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Researchers knew that Ancient Egyptians used Gold on many statues to ornament them but with surface grime, wear and tear many recently unearthed artefacts had lost their gilding.
9. Careful Measurements
With a site as unique as Heracleion, it was integral for researchers to measure everything. Both the intact pieces found and yes, even the ones which had turned into rubble. Doing this also added credibility to the site and allowed it to be cross-referenced.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
The Aboukir Bay was precious beyond words and while this might look like an old piece of rock to many of us. Historians saw it as a valuable way to unearth Ancient Egypt’s secrets. Here a diver measures the red granite statue.
8. An Oil Lamp
Sunken around the sea life of the bay was a bronze oil lap, which dates back to the 2nd century B.C. Small items like this are never uncovered from this time period since most are destroyed or lost.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Funnily enough, it was Heracleion’s devasting earthquake and sinking which allowed these items to stay preserved over the thousands of years. We love this image, the most since it gives us a glimpse into the day to day items used in the city.
7. Items Made of Gold
This gold saucer is a shallow dish which was used back then for drinking and serving. But that’s not the only item made of gold. There are also some intact gold fragments into a stone, which date back to the 6th century B.C.!
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Something beautiful and sad about this image! This item might have been in someone’s home or used by a rich merchant at the time and to see it now, with its owners gone for decades while this piece still remains.
6. Was She Cleopatra?
The divers found a beautiful statue under the water. It represented a Ptolemaic queen, and researchers believe it was Cleopatra II or Cleopatra III. The statue appears dressed as the goddess Isis.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
We know, we have said it plenty of times already but finds like this statue are unbelievably rare. Not only can we clearly discern the facial features on this statue but can even see the clothing items worn at the time.
5. The Treasures Pile Up
This picture has to be one of our favourites. The still bright statue peeking out of the soil and surrounded by rubble. It all has a poetic sense, that we can not ignore. Plus, the level of detail still present on the artefact adds life to it.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
It is a fully bronze figure representing the pharaoh of the 26th dynasty, which was discovered in a small temple. While the temple did not survive the years, we are very glad that this piece did.
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4. Travelling to Find Out More
Many researchers from all over the world have started travelling to learn more about the Egyptian city. And you cannot deny that this incredible underwater discovery is truly a treasure for humankind.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Once cleaned of debris, you can unquestionably see the detail still present in these 1200-year-old statues. Apart from the detail, most statues found on the surface of the earth have lost their colour. While these ones, have been preserved by water and still hold the original dark pigment.
3. Untouched By Time
The lost city seems untouched by time as it slept for so many years underwater. Some scientists even joke that if all cities have been sunk, they would know heaps more regarding the history of our world.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
In this picture, you can see divers carefully collecting real gold pieces from a stone box. They are measuring not only the box but each piece to decipher what the precious metal might have been used for.
2. Red Granite
In this photo, you’re looking at a red granite statue which depicts the god of the flooding of the Nile – Hapi. He also represented abundance and fertility, and this huge statue is the first one discovered at such a scale.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
Red granite was commonly used for Gods statues since it was a precious stone, made to withstand the elements. Ancient Egypt had many working granite mines. Limestone was also used but only for statues of lesser nobles.
1. Incredible Scientists
Apart from the statues of Gods, one discovery was prized above all. This real-life statue of a full-grown loin was found among the city. This artefact gives us unbound insight into skillmanship of ancient Egypt.
Christoph Gerigk © Franck Goddio / Hilti Foundation
While all the artefacts uncovered in Heracleion are amazing and have progressed our understanding of ancient Egypt leaps and bounds, researchers still need more information to fully comprehend what everyday life might have been like, in 6th B.C.
Source: www.franckgoddio.org