The ingots cargo of Capo Sagro 2 shipwreck: 2,5 Million sesterces on the bottom of the Mediterranean

Résumé En

The Capo Sagro 2 shipwreck lies at a depth of almost 500 metres off the cape of the same name some miles to the north-east of the coast of Corsica. Discovered by chance, a number of remotely operated dives to verify the site quickly demonstrated the unusual nature of the cargo, which is very largely composed of ingots of tin.A photogrammetry survey of the clearly visible mound on the surface of the site revealed the relative homogeneity of the cargo, which does not appear to have suffered serious disturbance since the sinking. Despite the lack of a real excavation it has been possible to extract a lot of information about the ship and its exceptional load. Some parts of the ship were precisely identified, like the pump pit, which made it possible to specify the orientation and the original dimensions of the boat while questioning the importance and the very particular arrangement of this exceptional cargo. The lifting of a few Oberaden 74 amphorae and some objects from the crew equipment have dated the sinking to within the Augustan period and led to theories as to the port of departure and route taken by the ship. The identification of different forms of ingot and an examination of the sample that was the object of a targeted lifting have shed new light on the trade routes of tin in the Mediterranean. It is, however, above all the very size of this cargo, estimated at around forty tons, which is remarkable, since it makes the Capo Sagro 2 the largest known cargo of metal in the Roman period.