Measuring 6.16 meters in length and between 67 and 71 centimeters in width, this is the first monolithic dugout canoe, carved from a single tree trunk, discovered in Lazio, near Punta Calcino on the Bisentina Island, at a depth of approximately 14 meters. Radiometric analyses dating between 1365 and 1020 BC (towards the end of the Middle Bronze Age and the beginning of the Late Bronze Age). Xylotomical analyses identified the type of wood as beech.

At both ends, there is a ring, likely made with a saving technique, with one end showing a well-preserved part and the other a few fragments. This detail suggests that the vessel could have been used as a double dugout canoe or, if needed, as a raft with additional planks placed on top.

Date da ricordare:

  • 1989: discovery and graphic surveying

  • 1990: retrieval and transfer to the former slaughterhouse of Capodimonte, now the Museum

  • 1993: installation of recirculation and purification system with silt removal

  • 1995: construction of steel tank

  • 1998/2000: consolidation through baths with PEG at temperatures between 55 and 60 degrees Celsius

  • 2001/2005: transfer to the Central Institute for Restoration in Rome

  • 2010: display of the dugout canoe in a glass case and inauguration of the Museum

Bibliography:

  • P. Petitti (a cura di), Sul filo della corrente. La navigazione nelle acque interne in Italia centrale dalla Preistoria all’eta’ moderna, 2009, pp. 167-173

  • C. Pisu, Relazione presentata al Museo Nazionale di Villa Giulia, 1 febbraio 2018 visibile al link