Archaeological site
Remains of the Ancient Shipwreck "Pod galija"
Viganj is located in the west of
the Pelješac peninsula and is a famous place for several reasons. West of
Viganj near Punta St. John's, the remains of an ancient shipwreck can be found
in the sea. At a depth of approximately 30 meters, the space is full of
ceramics. The site was accidentally discovered in 1935, when sponge diggers in
their search for sponges lifted a lead anchor bar from the bottom. The second
anchor bar was raised from the sea in 1958. From the first to the second rung,
more than twenty years of looting of the locality have passed, and this
practice continued later.
The first serious investigations
of the shipwreck site were carried out in 1971 and 1972. The aim of the
investigation was to determine what was at the bottom of the sea, and the
remains of the ship's structure, as well as other objects, were removed. During
the research itself, several items that the researchers had prepared for
extraction were stolen. The locality itself is defined by an area of 18x12
meters. Most of the stolen objects later appeared on the black market, some
were bought for museums, but the thieves always disappeared from the sight of
justice.
The shipwreck is dated to the 2nd
century. Based on the remains of the ship, it is assumed that the ship was 25
meters long and that it was transporting kitchen ceramics to a larger port
further north on the Adriatic. Research has established that the pottery
originated in Turkey and Greece. The items that perished in the shipwreck
belong to eastern kitchen ceramics, and mostly there are pots, bowls, jugs,
plates and pans, lids and a small part of a rare example of kitchen inventory
such as burners and griddles.
Today, Viganj is a well-known
tourist destination for athletes and active recreationists, who on the waters
of the Pelješac Canal find their adrenaline pleasure in windsurfing,
kite-sailing, diving, skiing at sea... However, of all sports, windsurfing and
kitesurfing are extremely popular, and the Pelješac Canal which is the
narrowest near Viganj, offers daily opportunities for practicing these sports
in the summer months. Due to the narrowing of the channel, the wind near Viganj
gains strength and its average speed is 30 km/h, and the maximum is 70 km/h.
Viganj has been the center of
surfing in Croatia for many decades, as many international and world sports
competitions in sailing have been held. With 260 sunny hours a year, constant
wind during warm weather and numerous other cultural and natural attractions,
Viganj is the destination of every adrenaline lover of sea and wind!
Fun fact: Windsurfing is a sport
that originated in Great Britain in 1958. Windsurfing is organized as a
competition in two disciplines: freestyle sailing and buoy races. Kitesurfing,
on the other hand, is a newer adrenaline sport, the beginnings of which are
connected with the year 1997 as the beginning of commercial kitesurfing,
because in that year it was possible to buy the first kite for kitesurfing.
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