Ancient Shipwreck, Vrboska

The ancient shipwreck lies in Duboka bay on the northern side of the island of Hvar, near Vrboska, in the municipality of Jelsa. It is an underwater archaeological site, of interest to divers and lovers of maritime history, because it shows what the transport of cargo by sea looked like in late antiquity.

The bottom of the bay is sandy and slopes gently towards the depth. Fragments of amphorae are scattered across it, and whole amphorae can be glimpsed in the sand. The site has already been investigated and most of the movable archaeological material has been recovered, but the location has not been fully explored: part of the cargo still lies under the sand, and well-preserved wooden parts of the ship's structure have also survived. The amphorae found are African, cylindrical, of the type Africana II (Keay IV–VI) and Keay XXV, along with several variants of ribbed late antique oval amphorae. The shipwreck is dated to the 4th century.

The ancient shipwreck is a protected cultural property and is entered in the Register of Cultural Goods of the Republic of Croatia under the code Z-231. It belongs to the archaeological heritage of Split-Dalmatia County.

Photo: Unknown authorUnknown author, CC BY-SA 3.0 hr, Wikimedia Commons.
Data: Register of Cultural Goods of the Republic of Croatia (Ministry of Culture and Media), Open Licence; coordinates: DGU (centre of the settlement).