Haaretz –A trove of treasures, from ancient Egyptian statues to coins and amphorae with stamped handles, has been found inside the wreck of the Mentor, one of the ships used to transport the Parthenon marbles from Piraeus to England. The overburdened frigate sank in 1802 southwest of the island of Kythera. Even 200 years of depredation by looters failed to find all its secrets, which are now being uncovered by marine archaeologists.
The precious marble slabs themselves were saved from the depths at the time: Lord Elgin lost no time ordering their salvage. In correspondence with the local vice consul of Great Britain seeking assistance, he wrote “…she had on board some quantities of boxes with stones of no value, but of great consequence for me to secure…”.
Now a team of marine archaeologists headed by the Greek Culture Ministry’s Ephorate of Underwater Antiquities, Dimitris Kourkoumelis, has revisited the Mentor and excavated more of the hull, which had been badly damaged by looting and many salvage operations over the years.
“We have uncovered the remainder of the hull, sections of the hull and prow, a mere quarter of the ship,” Kourkoumelis told Haaretz, adding that unfortunately the rest of the hull had been completely destroyed during the 19th and 20th century, by treasure hunters seeking more marbles that were rumored to have remained on the seabed.
Read the full article on the Elgin ship and how parthenon marbles were salvaged here
