Cap Lardier 1

Country: France

Place: Mediterranean coast, 400 m east of Cap Lardier

Type: Merchantman (moderately sized cargo vessel)

Identified: Not identified by name

Dated: Late sixteenth century

Keel Length: Unknown; the after section of the keel and the stern assembly are missing

History of the shipwreck

The wreck was known to local divers by 1960 but was not reported to authorities until 1969. Situated close to the rocky shoreline and buried in sand, its location encouraged tourism, but no scientific investigation took place until 1986/7 (Joncheray 1991, 5-6).

Archaeologists removed Posidonia from the site and uncovered a moderately sized vessel containing a cargo of slate and other materials, with the slate stacked in rows at the bottom of the hull. Analysis of the stone suggested it was quarried around Fontanabuona, Italy, and transported to the coastal town of Lavagna, east of Genoa, where it was loaded onto the ship (Joncheray 1991, 46).

The current interpretation of the site suggests the heavily loaded vessel, traveling too close to shore, struck the rocky coast and sank a few hundred meters from the point of impact; a 15 m debris field extends in the direction of the cape. The slate cargo acted as ballast on this voyage, and after the sinking, its weight flattened the surviving hull structure, pinning it into the sandy bottom (Joncheray 1991, 25).

Description of the site

The site lies close to the rocky shoreline, 400 m east of Cap Lardier, buried in sand, with a 15 m debris field extending toward the cape (Joncheray 1991, 5-6, 25).

Cargo

Slate, stacked in rows at the bottom of the hull and quarried around Fontanabuona, Italy, before being transported to Lavagna, east of Genoa, for loading. Other cargo included polychrome tableware with incised decorations, ceramic jars, bags carrying iron nails, sandstone grinding wheels, floor slabs, and paving stones (Joncheray 1991, 31-43, 46, 49-51).

Objects associated with the ship comprised common ceramics, a chisel, flint, a glass bottle neck, and an intricate set of tiny copper chains, rings, and needles (Joncheray 1991, 31-43, 49-51).

Hull Remains

Most of the framing was crushed by the slate cargo.

Keel

What remains of the keel includes the forward end, which simply butted the missing stem, though a stopwater was inserted between the two timbers. The keel is almost square, with no rabbet for the garboard. Its full length is unknown, as the after section is missing along with the stern assembly (Joncheray 1991, 25).

Frames

The few surviving frame elements indicate that floor timbers merely overlapped with futtocks, the two secured by three nails clenched on opposite sides. Floor timbers are rectangular and closely spaced in the surviving examples toward the front of the hull; none survive amidships, but their original positions can be identified by iron fastening concretions on the planking (Joncheray 1991, 25-8).

It is difficult to determine whether the framing was based on a single or dual master frame. Two futtocks near amidships have little space between them, suggesting they were on either face of a single floor timber. The other surviving futtocks are attached to the faces of floor timbers toward the center of the ship, which is usually the opposite of the typical pattern (Joncheray 1991, 23).

Keelson

No evidence of the keelson survives, except for three bolts driven through floor timbers (Joncheray 1991, 23).

Planking

Planking is slightly thicker (4.2 cm) than seen on similarly sized vessels. Each strake was fastened with one to three iron nails, with additional nails included at key locations, such as the connection of the garboards to the frames, around the turn of the bilge, or for scarfs in the planking. There is at least one example of a half-lap scarf between two planks (Joncheray 1991, 28-30).

Ballast

The slate cargo acted as ballast on this voyage (Joncheray 1991, 25).

Size and scantlings

The keel is almost square in section, with no rabbet for the garboard. Planking averages 4.2 cm in thickness. No overall ship dimensions are given.

References

Joncheray, J.-P., 1991. “L'épave dite «des ardoises», au cap Lardier”