KYTHERA, Mentor Wreck - 2012

Kythera. Wreck of the Mentor. D. Kourkoumelis (EMA) reports on the second excavation season which focused on the stern area where various items belonging to the crew and passengers were discovered in 2009 and 2011, and on the exposure and cleaning of part of the ship’s well-preserved frame.

A 10m-long section of the frame was uncovered towards the prow, including the part broken on the rocks when the ship sank. Cleaning in the surrounding area revealed a number of personal items belonging to crew or passengers, including many buttons from uniforms and other clothing as well as bowls and an hour-glass. Other finds made during the excavation include navigation instruments, a nautical compass, glass ink-wells, portable ink-wells, a pocket-watch, a further pistol (the third found to date), a seal-stone with a depiction of a cannon, a gold chain, and various decorative items. Two gold coins were found (one being a Dutch issue of 1788), plus three silver contemporary with the date of the wreck, and two ancient silver coins (one Boiotian and the other Athenian, the latter pierced for use as jewellery).