Colonia Sant Jordi (Sant Jordi 1), 100–80 BC
Country: Spain
Place: Colònia de Sant Jordi, south coast of Mallorca (Balearic Islands), 60 m from the shore, at a depth of 4 m
Coordinates (approximate): 39.32, 2.99
Type: Roman Republican merchant ship
Identified: No
Dated: 100–80 BC, based on its Italian cargo (Colls 1980: 89).
Beam: Unknown.
Keel Length: Unknown; the keel was not preserved.
Length Overall: Unknown.
Number of Masts: Unknown.
History of the wreck
The underwater area, with several sites, was discovered by chance by a diver who regularly informed Cerdà, who carried out a series of interventions there (Cerdà 1980: 12). One of the sites mapped was the one called Sant Jordi 1, which was excavated by Colls in 1977 and 1978 (Colls 1987: 15) and which preserves remains of its hull with a number of particular features. It was dated by its cargo of Italian origin, mainly Dressel 1A, Dressel 1C and Lamboglia 2 amphorae and Campanian ware, to between 100 and 80 BC (Colls 1980: 89), and its destination is interpreted as having been the Hispanic provinces.
Description of the site
The wreck of Colonia Sant Jordi, also called Sant Jordi 1, lies off the south coast of the island of Mallorca in very shallow water (4 m) and 60 m from the shore, in a bay opened by the Punta de Campos and protected by a series of islets, among which Na Guardis stands out for its archaeological importance. At the time of excavation 11.30 × 3.60 m of the hull were preserved (Figure 1), broken into two fragments, 1.10 m apart, belonging to one of the sides.
Figure 1. Plan of the surviving remains of the Sant Jordi 1 wreck (after Colls 1987: 20).
Cargo
The cargo, of Italian origin, consisted mainly of Dressel 1A, Dressel 1C and Lamboglia 2 amphorae, with Campanian ware.
Ballast
Not reported.
Anchors
Not reported.
Guns
Not applicable.
Iron concretions
Not reported. One frame, thicker than average, was fastened to the hull with iron nails and has been interpreted as a repair made after construction.
Hull Remains
A section of one side of the hull, 11.30 × 3.60 m, in two fragments, was preserved, with 11 strakes, 15 frames and a fragment of wale (Figure 1). Since it is a part of the hull near the turn of the bilge, with no remains of the backbone, it is not possible to determine which part of the frames is preserved.
Keel, keelson and mast step
Not preserved.
Frames
Fifteen frames (Quercus sessiliflora ex-robur) were preserved, fastened to the hull by truncated-cone wooden treenails (Pinus sylvestris), 2.3 cm in diameter and 16–18 cm long, made on a lathe,1 all of which served as guides for square-section copper nails, whose points were generally bent downwards towards the centreline (Figure 2). These frames were very light, with sided dimensions of 8 to 12 cm and moulded dimensions of 9 to 12 cm, which gives them an almost rectangular appearance, and a room-and-space (malla) of 16 to 24 cm. One of them, thicker than average and fastened to the hull with iron nails, was interpreted as a repair made after construction. Notably, frames 5 and 7 have a bevelled joint to extend their length, of which there are few known examples2 (Figure 3).
Figure 2. Diagram of the bending of the projecting points of the nails fastening the frames (after Colls 1987: 40).
Figure 3. Frames 5 and 7, with the scarf cut for their extension (after Colls 1987: 30).
Planking
The main fragment had 11 strakes, with widths varying between 20 and 60 cm and a thickness of between 7 and 9 cm. The Sant Jordi 1 wreck has mortises staggered along the edges of the strakes, with a different depth on each edge of the same strake. The mortises are between 7.5 and 8.6 cm wide, 6.5 to 8 cm deep and 3.8 to 4.2 cm thick, spaced 5 to 6 cm apart. The tenons, of holm oak (Quercus ilex), are 13–14 cm long, 7.6 to 8 cm wide at their centre and 2.4 to 3 cm thick, with worked ends (Figures 4 and 5). The placing of the tenons is unusual, since they are not centred and are locked by three truncated-cone pegs (Ulmus minor): two driven from the inside of the hull on the edge of the strake where the mortise is deeper, and another driven from the outside of the hull inwards. This allowed Colls (1980: 32) to speak of pre-assembly.
Two lengths of plank in the same strake are joined by a simple bevelled scarf reinforced by copper nails, 14 to 21 cm long, driven horizontally.
Figure 4. Axonometric view of the construction process proposed for the Sant Jordi 1, and section of the hull at a frame, showing how the frame was already in place before the hull was assembled (after Colls 1987: 26, 39).
Figure 5. Diagram of the arrangement of the mortises in the edges of the planking strakes, with different depths, and plan, section and axonometric views of a tenon with its three locking pegs (after Colls 1987: 27, 34).
Ceiling, thick stuff, and wales
In the northern part of the site a fragment of wale was preserved, 3.85 m long, 15.8 cm wide and 14 cm thick.
Caulking
The hull had external protection of pitch and rectangular lead sheets, 35 × 50 cm and 2 mm thick, with hammered overlaps (Figure 6). This sheathing could have weighed as much as 1 t (Colls 1980: 35) on the Sant Jordi 1. It was fastened with small copper nails, staggered and spaced 9 to 15 cm apart. A layer of resin between the hull and the lead sheets improved the watertightness of the hull and protected it from friction with the lead sheathing. The inside of the hull is protected by a layer of resin of variable thickness (2 mm), accumulating above all in the angles between the frames and the planking. This resin was spread with spatulas 11 to 15 cm wide, which left striations.
Figure 6. Fragment of the hull seen from the outside, showing the sheathing of rectangular lead sheets with hammered overlaps, fastened to the hull afterwards with small copper nails placed rhythmically (after Colls 1987: 28).
Size and scantlings
No estimate of the ship’s dimensions is given. The thick planking (7–9 cm) with large tenons locked by three pegs contrasts with the very light frames (8–12 × 9–12 cm) at a room-and-space of 16–24 cm.
Table 1. Scantling of the timber remains of the Sant Jordi 1 Shipwreck
| Timber | Sided [cm] | Molded [cm] |
| Keel | – | – |
| Keelson | – | – |
| Maststep Mortise | – – | – – |
| Buttresses | – | – |
| Frames | 8–12 | 9–12 |
| Futtocks | – | – |
| Room-and-space At central frames | 16–24 | |
| Planking | 20–60 | 7–9 |
| Wale | 15.8 | 14 |
| Ceiling | – | – |
| Main mast Ø Chock | – – | – – |
Planking and wale: sided = width, moulded = thickness. The preserved wale fragment is 3.85 m long.
Wood
Frames: oak (Quercus sessiliflora ex-robur). Tenons: holm oak (Quercus ilex). Tenon-locking pegs: field elm (Ulmus minor). Treenails: Scots pine (Pinus sylvestris).
Bibliography
Boetto, G. 2005. Le navi romane di Napoli. In D. Giampaola et al., La scoperta del porto di Neapolis: dalla ricostruzione topografica allo scavo e al recupero dei relitti. Archaeologia Maritima Mediterranea 2: 63–76.
Cerdà, D. 1980. La nave romano-republicana de la Colonia de Sant Jordi, Ses Salines – Mallorca. Palma de Mallorca.
Colls, D. 1980. [Full reference to be completed.]
Colls, D. 1987. L’épave Colonia de Sant Jordi 1 (Majorque). Publications du Centre Pierre Paris 16. Paris: De Boccard.
Notes
1 In many of the treenails the holes left by the lathe centres could be seen on their circular ends.
2 According to the author’s research, this type of joint between two lengths of the same frame is documented in the Madrague de Giens, the lagoon vessel of Conque des Salins, the unusual Nemi ships and the horeia Napoli C (Boetto 2005: 74).