October
03
/ 2019
Around 60 BC, a ship was wrecked off the northeast coast of a small island called Aigila in the straits between Crete and the Peloponnese. The exact character of the ship is not known, but it was probably a large merchant vessel, perhaps about 131 feet (40 meters) long, and in addition to the usual amphorae containing wine or other commodities, it bore a cargo of bronze and marble statuary and fine glassware. The life-size bronzes were antiques, a century or more old, but the other prestige objects were of recent manufacture. There were apparently also passengers — we know that a woman was aboard, the probable owner of two pairs of elegant golden earrings. When the ship’s remains were
