Salento does not tell its history only on the surface. A decisive part of its past lies beneath sea level, where ancient routes have left behind traces that are silent yet eloquent. On the seabed between the Adriatic and Ionian Seas, Roman maritime traffic created an invisible geography made up of shipwrecks, cargoes and floating infrastructure: true “architectures of movement”, designed to cross the Mediterranean and sustain its economy.
It is within this underwater landscape that two discoveries of extraordinary importance can be placed: the merchant vessel identified decades ago off Santa Caterina di Nardò and the Roman wreck recently discovered in the waters off Gallipoli. Two different stories, two distinct chronological contexts, yet a single common thread: Salento’s role as a place of transit, exchange and construction in the ancient world.
1. The Merchant Vessel of Santa Caterina, Nardò: Underwater Archaeology and Decades of History
Off Santa Caterina di Nardò, along the stretch of coastline facing the heart of Ionian Salento, lies the wreck of a Roman merchant vessel, dating from between the 4th and 2nd centuries BC, which has been resting on the seabed for more than forty years.
This cargo ship, approximately 23 metres long, was discovered in the 1980s and was carrying a substantial quantity of Greco-Italic amphorae, probably intended for the trade of wine and other food products along the maritime routes of the ancient Mediterranean.
A Submerged Legacy of Ancient Productive Architecture
The Nardò wreck is more than a collection of archaeological remains: it provides a link to the economic and commercial architecture of the Roman world. The amphorae found on board were not simply containers. Their shape, dimensions and distribution within the vessel reveal much about the design of cargo-storage spaces and the logistics of maritime transport. In other words, the ship itself becomes a form of “floating architecture”, a space designed to solve spatial and structural challenges not unlike those faced by the great port infrastructures of antiquity.
Today, many of these amphorae and other artefacts are displayed at the Museum of Ancient Sea in Nardò, where the reconstruction of the cargo hold helps visitors understand how the vessel’s interior spaces were organised efficiently and in accordance with the economic needs of the time.
Despite the importance of the discovery, the Santa Caterina wreck has remained relatively little studied and partly inaccessible for decades. Numerous fragments and the wooden structure preserved on the seabed still await a comprehensive intervention that could return them to scientific research and the wider public.
2. The Roman Ship off Gallipoli: A Cargo of Garum and a Recent Discovery
The second protagonist of this underwater story emerges from the waters of the Ionian Sea, off Gallipoli. In June 2025, during routine maritime checks, the Italian Guardia di Finanza detected an anomaly on the seabed that turned out to be the remains of a large Roman ship carrying a cargo of amphorae, probably sunk between the 3rd and 4th centuries AD.
This merchant vessel was carrying a homogeneous cargo of amphorae containing garum, the famous fish sauce highly prized in ancient Rome and a symbol of a sophisticated food market distributed widely among the elites throughout the Empire.
Garum: Taste and Trade in the Roman World
The discovery of the Gallipoli shipwreck expands our understanding of the trade networks of Late Antiquity. Garum was not simply a condiment: it was a luxury commodity transported by sea in quantities that required specialised vessels and advanced cargo-storage techniques.
The wreck, which is still being monitored and is the subject of a conservation and enhancement project funded by the Italian Ministry of Culture—with more than €780,000 allocated to its protection and scientific study—represents a key intersection between underwater archaeology, economic history and cultural heritage conservation in Salento.
Wood, Amphorae and Architecture: What These Ships Can Teach Us
These two discoveries—one submerged for decades, the other only recently revealed—offer us a richer and more layered portrait of ancient Salento:
- 🌍 Trade and mobility: Both ships document the role of Ionian and Adriatic maritime routes as essential arteries of exchange for luxury goods and everyday commodities throughout the Roman Mediterranean.
- 📐 Architecture applied to mobile space: Merchant vessels are unique examples of functional architecture designed to address the challenges of cargo capacity, stability, compartmentalisation and navigation. These design solutions parallel those found in the port structures and coastal infrastructure of the period.
- 🤿 Cultural landscape and heritage enhancement: Studying and preserving these wrecks highlights not only the importance of underwater archaeology, but also the value of integrating such discoveries into the region’s cultural and museum networks.
Conclusion: Salento as a Bridge Between Land and Sea
The Santa Caterina shipwreck near Nardò and the recently discovered wreck off the coast of Gallipoli are far more than sunken vessels. They are architectures of the past that tell stories of routes, cargoes, construction techniques and relationships between maritime and urban communities.
Over time, research and conservation efforts surrounding these discoveries may further enrich the historical narrative of Salento and strengthen the role of this land as a place where underwater archaeology intersects with the history and architecture of the Roman Mediterranean.