The Oldest Underwater City | Pavlopetri (History Documentary)

The city of Pavlopetri is considered the oldest submerged town in the world. It is located between the island of Alphonsos and the beach of Puneta, just off the coast of Laconia in the southern Peloponnese. The city was first described by Fokian Nigri, a geologist, in 1904, but his findings were not accepted at the time. It was years later, in 1967, when the oceanographer Nicholas Fleming visited the site and indeed confirmed the existence of an ancient city that was underwater around the depth of 3-4 meters. A year later, Nicholas Fleming came back with the help of Angelos Deleveras and other fellow archaeologists from the University of Cambridge. Together, they mapped out the city and discovered many buildings as well as city streets and squares. The archaeologists initially thought it was from the Mycenaean era. For those that don't know, the Mycenaean period was the last phase of the Bronze Age in Ancient Greece, which is around 1600-1100 BC. Some might know the tales of King Agamemnon who led the Greeks at the Battle of Troy. So back to what I was saying, the archaeologists thought it was from the Mycenaean period, but later discoveries showed that the site was inhabited much earlier. They found material from both the Bronze Age and the Neolithic Age that date back to around 5000 years ago, but the buildings and streets they found were from the Mycenaean period. The archaeological exploration of Pavlopetri consisted of 6 weeks and they found 15 houses that most had around 10 rooms. The houses were all different, but they all had a center room that could be an inner courtyard. As for the population of Pavlopetri, it is possible that it ranged from 300-600 people, or even more. It is just hard to say, it is just to give you guys a rough estimate. Now you're probably wondering, why is the layout of the house the only thing that is left? The base of the ground floor was made of stone. It was likely designed that way to protect the foundation of the homes from being damaged by rain that could have flooded the streets, which would mean the rest of the houses were likely made of unbaked bricks made of clay. This would explain why the walls are gone entirely. What about the streets of Pavlopetri? They are around 5 meters wide and are aligned with the houses. It is possible that the streets were paved, but the ocean waves could have smoothed them out over time. Another important find at Pavlopetri is the discovery of around 40 cis graves. A cis grave is a small type of grave that was used mostly in the Bronze Age. The cis graves are found between the houses, within the walls, and under the floor of the houses. They consist of four stones that form a rectangle, with a fifth stone that covers the grave. In 2009, a new survey of Pavlopetri began. With better equipment and technology than the 1968 expedition, the team found more than 9,000 meters squared of newly found building complexes that were likely hidden by sand deposits. The waves may have played a part in moving large amounts of sand in the area. Some of the discoveries include a large rectangular hall and a street lined with buildings, four cis graves, and a pithos jar. I think a question we are all wondering is why the city of Pavlopetri sank in the first place. It is unlikely that the water rising on its own would be enough to sink the city. It would have likely been something more destructive. Evidence of this can be found near the city. There are three clear lines of beach rock. To those that don't know, beach rock is sediment that hardens over time on the shore. It shows us there are three clear points where the water rose in a short time, likely hinting to a natural disaster, such as an earthquake. As to what role Pavlopetri played in ancient times, it is hard to say, but it is possible, based on its location, to the other surrounding cities, like Knossos and Crete, that Pavlopetri could have been part of an important trade network. All in all, it is likely more is to be discovered in Pavlopetri, and I can't wait to find out what they find next. Thanks for watching. This was a shorter video than usual, but I couldn't pass up the topic. I don't think a lot of people know about Pavlopetri, so hopefully you guys learned something interesting. If you liked the video, make sure to leave a like and share the video to others that have a similar interest. If you guys haven't already, make sure to subscribe. It really does help me out, and I'll see you guys in the next video.