AN unbelievable fifth-century Greek shipwreck is to be recovered from the seabed as invaluable ancient gold is being hunted.
The Gela II remains have been of interest since being identified near the port of Gela, Sicily – where artefacts have been discovered in the past.
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The recovery of the vessel is expected to take around 270 days to complete and is set to cost the companies involved around £420,000.
Despite the cost, the remains of Gela II are said to be invaluable.
Another vessel, Gela I, was recovered in the same area beforehand, meaning Gela II will double the breakthrough of cultural and tourist heritage.
The first conservation of Gela II will take place at a museum in Bosco Littorio which had Gela I last year.
This museum will work to preserve and care for the incredible recovered materials and artefacts.
Gela II had an initial investigation in 1995, five years after it was first discovered, where archaeologists were able to unearth invaluable items like Corinthian helmets and orichalcum ingots.
Orichalcum is thought to be the second most precious metal on Earth after gold and has even been mentioned in ancient times by the likes of Plato.
The artefacts are now part of a permanent collection of the Archaeological Museum of Gela as the new incredible excavation of Gela II looks to boost cultural tourism.
The first stage of Gela II’s excavation began in July with the ship measuring around 15m long and 5m wide.
Gela II was also discovered around 6m underwater and is set to be transported for restoration to the same museum where it will be displayed.
The Regional Councillor for Cultural Heritage and Sicilian Identity Francesco Paolo Scarpinato has stressed the significance of the operation for the city of Gela and its surroundings, LBV reports.
Within the next few days, the ship will be dismantled and brought up to then begin the restoration process in labs at Bosco Littorio, within the Parco Archeologico di Gela.
Gela II will be a central piece in the Gela Ship Museum.
It comes as a mysterious lost statue was found in the Titanic wreck by robot subs.
In 1986 a bronze statue called the Diana of Versailles was spotted on the sea floor by Robert Ballard – the legend that found the wreck of the Titanic a year prior.
But since then the location was unknown and never documented again – until now.
Experts found the two-foot-tall figure laying face up in the sediment.
The incredible statue stood tall for the Titanic’s first-class passengers in 1912.
Titanic researcher and podcast presenter James Penca told the BBC: “It was like finding a needle in a haystack, and to rediscover this year was momentous.
“The first-class lounge was the most beautiful, and unbelievably detailed, room on the ship.
“And the centrepiece of that room was the Diana of Versailles.”
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