An investigation into the absence of ancient Greek triremes in the archaeological record and a study of the battlefield deposition at the site of the Battle of the Aegates, off the Egadi Islands, to determine whether this example could direct future exploration for evidence of ancient Greek sea battles

Davies, Mark Charles (2021) An investigation into the absence of ancient Greek triremes in the archaeological record and a study of the battlefield deposition at the site of the Battle of the Aegates, off the Egadi Islands, to determine whether this example could direct future exploration for evidence of ancient Greek sea battles. In Honor Frost Foundation - Short Reports: 2021 Maritime Archaeology Graduate Symposium. 37 pp . (Submitted)

Record type: Conference or Workshop Item (Paper)

Abstract

Triremes enjoyed a long military history. However, no Greek trireme wrecks have been found, despite many thousands being built and lost. This short report seeks to explain this phenomenon. Many scholars hold that rammed triremes floundered rather than sank. I contend that there is little evidence to support this notion.
Recent finds from the Battle of the Aegates (241 B.C.E.) demonstrate that ancient warships did sink, and this article examines the specific conditions of the battle which caused the rammed warships to sink. Therefore, I propose an approach to target investigations on ancient Greek sea battles of the Classical period with similar conditions, where remains could be found.

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