A 16th-century shipwreck discovered by accident in March has proven to be the deepest in French waters and appears ‘frozen in time’, according to the archaeologists who have surveyed it.
The ship, which has been named Camarat 4, was discovered at a depth of more than 2.5 kilometres (1.5 miles) by a team from the French Navy’s Expert Center for Human Diving and Underwater Intervention (CEPHISMER), who were conducting a military survey of the seabed in the area off the coast of Ramatuelle, near Saint-Tropez.
Archaeologists from the French Department of Underwater and Submarine Archaeological Research (DRASSM) were invited to survey the wreck using remotely operated vehicles (ROVs) and found a cargo of almost perfectly preserved ceramics.
The ship, which is approximately 30 meters (100ft) long by 7m (23 ft) wide, has been identified as a merchant vessel and was carrying at least 200 ceramic pitchers and 100 yellow plates.
The wreck was also carrying anchors, six cannon and two large cooking pots, indicating it was kitted out for long sea voyages and protection against pirates.
The pitchers are decorated with several different styles, including flowers and geometric designs. Some bear the inscription ‘IHS’ – a Christogram used as a symbolic reference to Jesus Christ, based on the first three letters of the name in ancient Greek.
The design of the pitchers has been attributed to well-documented 16th-century ceramics from the Ligurian region of north-west Italy, and it is thought the ship would have sailed from a Ligurian port en route to its destination.
The wreck has been well-preserved by its depth and shows a remarkable insight into 16th-century maritime trade in the Mediterranean. It also shows some of the problems created by modern maritime pollution, with a drinks can photographed among the 2.5km-deep wreckage.
Camarat 4 has been recorded as the deepest wreck in French territorial water, 200m deeper than its predecessor, Minerve, a French Daphné class submarine which sank with the loss of its entire crew in January 1968.
DRASSM has said that ‘multi-year research’ operations will be made to explore the history of the wreck, which will include surveys, limited salvage and the creation of a photogrammetric 3D model of the wreck.
