An Italian merchant ship from the 16th century was located at a depth of 2,567 meters off Ramatuelle on the Côte d’Azur, a joint announcement by the French Navy and the Department of Underwater Archaeological Research (DRASSM) stated. The discovery marked the second-deepest shipwreck found worldwide.
The wooden hull, provisionally catalogued as Camarat 4, first appeared on sonar during a recent naval training exercise that used autonomous underwater vehicles. The drones, outfitted with 4K cameras, 3-D mapping tools, and robotic arms, turned a routine drill into an archaeological survey.
Diario AS noted that naval personnel piloted the remotely operated vehicles while DRASSM archaeologists directed sampling in real time, using mechanical claws that lifted objects with minimal disturbance. Measurements taken on site showed the wreck to be about 30 meters long and 7 meters wide. HuffPost Spain explained that near-freezing temperatures, total darkness, weak currents, and the absence of wood-boring organisms left the timbers well preserved.
“It looks like time stopped on the ship,” said archeologist Marine Sadania.
Inside the holds, archaeologists documented nearly 200 gray, blue, and white ceramic jars decorated with floral motifs, crosses, or the Christogram IHS, along with Ligurian jugs, tableware fragments, an anchor, six iron cannons, and smaller artillery pieces. Bundles of iron bars, still wrapped in plant fibers, filled much of the lower hold, underscoring iron’s role in 16th-century Mediterranean trade.
Modern refuse—plastic bottles, fishing nets, and beverage cans—had settled among the artifacts, illustrating how surface pollution reaches extreme depths. Even so, experts agree that the site’s archaeological value remained unparalleled.
Recovered items were transported in chilled seawater tanks to DRASSM laboratories, where conservators planned long-term stabilization. Each stage of the operation was recorded in high-definition images and full 3-D models for future study.
Scholars viewed Camarat 4 as a turning point for understanding Renaissance commerce. By tracing the ceramics and metal cargo, the team aimed to refine maps of 16th-century trade routes linking Italian, French, and wider European markets. The mission placed France at the forefront of underwater archaeology.
The global depth record still belongs to the USS Samuel B. Roberts, found at 6,895 meters in 2022 by explorer Victor Vescovo in the Philippine Sea. Yet specialists agreed that Camarat 4 served as a true time capsule of early modern maritime life.
Written with the help of a news-analysis system.