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Roman Ruins in Pisa:
[Regions
of Italy] 
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If you’re
planning to visit the Leaning Tower, you might also want to take the opportunity
to see what is being hailed as perhaps the greatest archeological naval discovery
in history – and
the way it came about is as Italian as it gets. Seems that about seven years
ago, the national railroad company decided to build an electrical station in
the marshy flatlands which lie about 500 yards from the tower (as the crow flies).
This is one of the few places in Italy that has absolutely no aesthetic value,
but the moist clay of the swamps has invisible powers: it is the perfect medium
for preserving the hardest element to preserve – wood! Lo and behold, as
the railroad crews began to dig, they found themselves uncovering no fewer than
30 almost perfect wooden boats dating from 200 BC to 500 AD. Inside the boats
were more than 1000 amphoras, originally used to transport treasures from as
far away as Africa to Italy through this, one of the country’s busiest
harbors. Today the site is so swampy that seven feet of fetid water must be constantly
drained off by pumps. Eventually, these truly rare wonders of the ancient world
will have their own museum in the city of Pisa itself, but that may not occur
in our lifetimes, and meanwhile if you plan well, you can actually visit the
dig itself, along with scores of eager archeologists. Admission is by reservation
only, made at least one week in advance, you must join a guided tour available
only Monday, Friday, and Saturday morning, and a quorum of 25 people is needed
to form a group (the organizers will take care of assigning you to a group).
Tours are in Italian only (but we imagine there will be someone who can give
you a little information in English and even if not, you will be able to see
the boats and the archeological work). To make your reservation, please call
(011-39) 055-321-5446.
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