Archaeologists have discovered a 16th-century merchant shipwreck more than 1.5 miles (2.5 km) underwater off the southern coast of France, in what officials say is the deepest known wreck ever found in French territorial waters.
The site was discovered by chance in early March by a government-operated underwater drone. The drone was scanning the seabed near Saint-Tropez as part of a broader mission to monitor deep-sea resources, including minerals and underwater cables.
“The sonar detected something quite big, so we went back with the device’s camera, then against with an underwater robot to snap high-quality images,” said Thierry de la Burgade, deputy maritime prefect.
Researchers say the vessel likely set sail from what is now northern Italy, carrying a cargo of ceramic jugs and metal bars. The ship sank more than 1.5 miles below the surface, deep enough to escape looting or major disturbance.
Photos taken by the French Navy show the wreck of a 16th-century merchant ship, containing jugs marked with the IHS monogram of Christ or with plant or geometric motifs, lying on the sand off the coast near Ramatuelle, France.
The wreck was discovered some 2,567 metres deep in… pic.twitter.com/btMkrGlAUz
— AFP News Agency (@AFP) June 12, 2025
“It’s the deepest shipwreck ever found in French territorial waters,” said Arnaud Schaumasse, who heads the culture ministry’s department for underwater archaeology.
At the wreck site – now named “Camarat 4” – archaeologists found nearly 200 ceramic jugs with narrow spouts. Some were marked with “IHS,” (Greek:ΙΧΡ) a symbol linked to Jesus in Greek, while others displayed floral and geometric patterns.
These signs point to Liguria, a coastal region in modern-day Italy, as the source of the pottery, according to archaeologist Marine Sadania.
The team also discovered about 100 yellow plates, two cooking pots, an anchor, and six cannons. Among the historic cargo, researchers spotted modern trash such as a soda can and an empty yogurt cup – likely carried there by ocean currents.
Despite the scattered modern debris, the wreck remains largely untouched. “The site – thanks to its depth, which prevented any recovery or looting – has remained intact, as if time froze, which is exceptional,” Sadania said.
Une épave a été découverte dans le Var, au large de Ramatuelle. Reposant à 2500 mètres de profondeur depuis 500 ans, sa riche cargaison a été présentée à la presse. #JT20h pic.twitter.com/Rei3D0u7Vb
— Le20h-France Télévisions (@le20hfrancetele) June 11, 2025
Her team plans to map the entire site and create a 3D digital model over the next two years. They will also collect samples for analysis before returning all items to public collections.
France’s defense ministry, which manages deep-sea exploration, said robots equipped with arms or pincers are used to recover fragile items. These robots are controlled from vessels on the surface through long, tethered cables.
Before this discovery, the deepest wreck in French waters was La Minerve, a French navy submarine found in 2019 near Toulon at a depth of 2.3 kilometers. The submarine sank in 1968, killing all 52 crew members just minutes into a routine mission.
The newly found merchant ship offers a rare glimpse into trade and life in the Mediterranean during the 1500s, preserved in the silence of the deep.
