5 July 2025 The Future is the Product of the Past

Temple of Olympian Zeus Horse Frieze Found a Depth of 9 Meters off the Coast of Agrigento, Sicily

A large marble relief believed to have been part of the Temple of Olympian Zeus frieze in Agrigento, Sicily, has been recovered from the seabed off the coast of San Leone, not far from the mouth of the Akragas River.

The find recovered is most likely a marble frontal decoration belonging to the famous Temple: the fragment depicts a prancing horse, an iconic element in artistic representations of the Greek period.

Divers from the Carabinieri’s Diving Unit carried out the operations alongside representatives from the Superintendency of the Sea, the Carabinieri’s Cultural Heritage Protection Unit, and the Underwater Group of BCsicilia, a volunteer organization that promotes and protects Sicily’s cultural heritage and disseminates information.

Covered with concretions, the find, almost certainly made of Proconnesian marble, measuring 2 meters by 1.6 meters and 35 cm thick, lay about 300 meters from the coast, at a depth of 9 meters, although this piece was already generically cataloged in the area.

The sculptural fragment was recovered at 9 meters depth.  Photo: BCSicilia
The sculptural fragment was recovered at 9 meters depth. Photo: BCSicilia

Under the direction of engineer Gaetano Lino, the BC Sicily Subgroup discovered the element’s potential in October through photogrammetric studies. They successfully rescued the fragment today after informing the authorities and overcoming meteorological challenges.

Its study will provide new insights into this grand construction from the 5th century BC.

The Temple of Zeus was erected by the tyrant Theron, ruler of the Greek colony of Acragas (now known as Agrigento) and a large part of Western Sicily. He built the temple after his victory in the Battle of Himera in 480 B.C., for its proportions, were one of largest of antiquity.

It is an essentially Doric building but it was pseudoperipteral i.e. there were no free-standing columns but demi-columns, seven by fourteen, engaged into a continuous wall. In the intercolumni (spaces between the columns) stood giant statues (7.61 meters high) called Telamons or Atlantes.

Cover Photo: 3D image of the in situ find from October 2022 processed by BCsicilia.

Related Articles

Smoke archeology finds evidence Humans visited Nerja Cave for 40,000 Years

26 April 2023

26 April 2023

A new study by a team from the University of Córdoba reveals that Nerja is the European cave with the...

Lost sketches by Leonardo Da Vinci show that he understood gravity long before Newton

19 February 2023

19 February 2023

Leonardo da Vinci’s centuries-old sketches show that he may have understood key aspects of gravity long before Galileo, Newton, and...

Roman-era Pottery Workshop discovered in Alexandria

29 April 2022

29 April 2022

The Egyptian archaeological mission discovered a Roman-era pottery workshop at the site of Tibet Mutawah, west of Alexandria. The researchers...

Flint tools found in Tunel Wielki Cave, Poland, about half a million years old

9 October 2022

9 October 2022

Flint tools discovered over 50 years ago in the Tunel Wielki Cave (Maopolskie region) are not tens of thousands of...

1,500-year-old Byzantine artifacts found under a peach orchard in Turkey’s Iznik

27 January 2023

27 January 2023

In the world-famous historical city of Iznik, which was the capital of four civilizations, a farmer found coins and historical...

Large Roman Complex found in Swiss Gravel Quarry

30 August 2023

30 August 2023

Archaeologists have discovered the remains of walls of a Roman building complex built nearly 2,000 years ago in the Äbnetwald...

Archaeologists identify a sunken Nabataean temple dedicated to the God Dusares at Pozzuoli

12 April 2023

12 April 2023

Off the coast of Pozzuoli on the Phlegrean Peninsula in Campania, Italy, underwater archaeologists have identified a sunken Nabataeans temple...

Hoysala temples inch closer towards UNESCO recognition

7 February 2022

7 February 2022

The Indian Union government recently proposed the Somanathapura temple in Mysuru district and Chennakeshava and Hoysaleshwara temples in Belur and...

“Secret” Excavations in Luxembourg Reveal 141 Roman Gold Coins from Nine Roman Emperors

13 January 2025

13 January 2025

Archaeologists uncovered a Roman gold coin hoard of 141 Roman gold coins dating to the second half of the 4th...

The Tomb of Prince with a Monumental Pink Granite False Door Unearthed in Saqqara

23 April 2025

23 April 2025

In a remarkable archaeological discovery, an Egyptian team has unveiled the tomb of Prince Waser-If-Re, son of Pharaoh Userkaf, the...

The Gobi Wall: Ancient Statecraft Hidden in Mongolia’s Sands

17 June 2025

17 June 2025

Stretching 321 kilometers across the arid highlands of southern Mongolia, the Gobi Wall has long stood as a silent enigma...

Amarna’s Hidden Chapter: From Abandoned Pharaoh’s City to Christian Monastic Hub

26 June 2025

26 June 2025

New archaeological findings have reshaped our understanding of Amarna, the once-glorious capital of ancient Egypt founded by Pharaoh Akhenaten in...

An 11,000-Year-Old Settlement Redefines Early Indigenous Civilizations in North America

11 February 2025

11 February 2025

A groundbreaking archaeological discovery near Sturgeon Lake First Nation is rewriting the narrative of early Indigenous civilizations in North America,...

The sword, thought to be a replica, turned out to be an authentic 3000-year-old Bronze Age sword

22 January 2023

22 January 2023

A sword in Chicago’s Field Museum that was previously thought to be a replica has been revealed to be an...

Ancient Mesopotamian Cylinder Seals Offer Clues to the Origin of Writing

6 November 2024

6 November 2024

Researchers from the University of Bologna have discovered an association between proto-cuneiform and even older stone images engraved on ancient...