19 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Battle of the Egadi Islands: Rome’s deadly weapons discovered off Sicily

Underwater archaeologists from the Soprintendenza del Mare Regione Siciliana, RPM Nautical Foundation, and the Society for the Documentation of Submerged Sites (SDSS), two bronze warships rams and military equipment were unearthed at the site of the Battle of the Egadi Islands (241 BC).

The Battle of the Egadi Islands (also known as the Battle of the Aegates) took place on March 10, 241 B.C., off the western coast of the island of Sicily, between the ancient Roman and Carthaginian naval fleets. The fight between the two fleets comprised over 500 ships and resulted in a resounding Roman victory. It was also the final battle of the 23-year-long First Punic War.

The Roman triumph not only gave Rome its first foreign territory (Sicily) and dominance of the Central Mediterranean, but it also laid the stage for two Punic Wars to follow.

Two bronze warship rams were discovered during the 2021 season, increasing the total number of bronze warship rams discovered to 25. Only two warship rams were known to have survived from Antiquity prior to this study, putting these maritime armaments among the most uncommon items that have survived from ancient Mediterranean civilization.

 Hundreds of lead slinger bullets, employed as fatal projectiles in warfare, many bronze helmets and cheek-pieces, and Roman and Hellenistic Greek coins were discovered during this year’s campaign.

Diver with ancient ram discovery, Sicily, Italy. Photo by Mario Arena
Diver with ancient ram discovery, Sicily, Italy. Photo by Mario Arena

The research also discovered a massive merchant shipwreck in the same location, shipping amphorae made in Lusitania (modern Portugal) and Baetica (Spain) in the first half of the fourth century AD.

Ongoing underwater studies of the combat site are being carried out from the Hercules research vessel, which is equipped with an autonomous underwater vehicle (AUV) to map the seafloor and a remotely operated vehicle (ROV) to investigate submerged objects. The survey area is 270 km2, with the main fighting area spanning 12 km2.

The bronze rams and armor were the pinnacles of technology at the time of their creation, revealing information about Roman and Carthaginian capabilities in the mid-3rd century BC.

Dr. Peter Campbell (RPMNF/Cranfield University) remarked regarding the year’s discoveries, “This season’s discoveries provide a rare glimpse into life and death during the 3rd century BC. The results also speak to the value of collaborative research when working in the challenging environment of great depth and a site of this enormous scale.”

RPM Nautical Foundation

Cover Photo: The 200kg bronze battering rams were used to destroy Carthaginian ships. RPM NAUTICAL FOUNDATION

Related Articles

Cosmic cataclysm 1,500 years ago may have caused downfall of the Hopewell Culture

3 February 2022

3 February 2022

Researchers at the University of Cincinnati find evidence of cosmic cataclysm 1,500 years ago at 11 ancient sites in three...

2,000-Year-Old Artifacts Found at Swat’s Butkara Site in Pakistan, Including Coins and Kharosthi Inscriptions

14 February 2025

14 February 2025

Excavations at the Butkara Stupa, located near Mingora in Swat, Pakistan, have uncovered significant findings, including two-thousand-year-old coins, pottery, and...

8,000-year-old Female Figurine Discovered in Ulucak Höyük in Western Türkiye

15 August 2024

15 August 2024

One of the most prominent and oldest Neolithic sites found in what is now Turkey has yielded yet another interesting...

Ruins of the 700-year-old wharf, possibly used by royalty, found in Oslo

6 March 2023

6 March 2023

An excavation by NIKU archaeologists in Oslo’s seaside neighborhood of Bjørvika has uncovered the remains of a long section of...

7,000-Year-Old Temple at Risk: Urgent Calls to Save Santa Verna Archaeological Site in Gozo

17 July 2025

17 July 2025

Archaeologists and heritage conservationists are sounding the alarm over continued development near the Santa Verna archaeological site, a prehistoric temple...

Ancient Roman coin thought to be fake -certainly authentic and proves the existence of ‘forgotten’ leader Sponsian, study claims

26 November 2022

26 November 2022

History is littered with artifacts that were later discovered to be forgeries, but the opposite can also occur. A new...

Ancient Mastaba Tomb of Royal Physician “Magician of the Goddess Selket” discovered in Sakkara

7 January 2025

7 January 2025

In the southern region of the Saqqara archaeological site, a joint French-Swiss archaeological team made an important discovery uncovering the...

Extraordinary Discovery of a Unique Painted Tomb in Tarquinia’s Etruscan Necropolis

1 February 2025

1 February 2025

Exceptional discovery in the necropolis of Tarquinia, located near the western coast in central Italy, north of Rome (a UNESCO...

Researchers Examine 4,000 Bricks to Solve the Secrets of an Ancient Roman Metropolis of Trier

12 April 2025

12 April 2025

Trier, once a significant economic and political center in the northern provinces of the Roman Empire, is set to be...

3500-year-old ceramic oven discovered in Turkey’s Tepecik Mound

24 August 2021

24 August 2021

A 3,500-year-old ceramic oven was unearthed in Tepecik Mound in the Çine district of Aydın, in western Turkey. Tepecik Höyük,...

The earliest manuscript of Gospel about Jesus’s childhood discovered in Germany

14 June 2024

14 June 2024

A newly deciphered manuscript dating back 1,600 years has been determined to be the oldest record of Jesus Christ’s childhood,...

A Medieval Barbican and a Network of Passages Uncovered in Western Slovakia’s town of Trenčín

5 December 2024

5 December 2024

A medieval barbican (fortified outpost or fortified gateway), and a network of passages that acted as a sewerage system have...

Ancient scrolls reveal astonishing information about the life of a Nabatean woman, who lived in the first century AD in Petra

18 December 2023

18 December 2023

Petra was the capital of a powerful trading empire two thousand years ago. It was established by the Nabateans, a...

4000-year-old sword found in Finland

12 October 2021

12 October 2021

A Bronze Age sword dating back as far as 1700 B.C.was discovered broken in items in Finland this previous summer...

Drone Mapping Reveals Shockingly Huge Size of 3,000-Year-Old Caucasus Settlement

11 January 2025

11 January 2025

Using drone mapping, an academic from Cranfield University in the UK has revealed that Dmanisis Gora, a 3,000-year-old mountainside fortress...