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E. Lodolo, Z. Ben-Avraham / Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports 3 (2015) 398–407 405
estimate of the total prediction uncertainty σ pred for each locality and
for each epoch (Lambeck et al., 2004):

2
σ pred ¼ 0:012 T þ 0:24 T−0:13 ð 1 N T N 14 kyrÞ
This would be about ±3.5 m at ~10 k year.
When the sea level reached the upper threshold of the outer ridge,
sea water would have flooded the inner areas of the PVB, probably forc-
ing the abandonment of the site (Fig. 8).
5. Discussion

The obtained age for the PVB site places it within the beginning of
the Mesolithic. Perhaps the most important archaeological discovery
of the Mesolithic age is the monumental temple complex of Göbekli
Tepe, situated in south-eastern Turkey. Carbon-dated to about
11,600 year B.P., this site is believed to have been a religious centre or
sanctuary (Mann, 2011) serving a well-organized settlement (or series
of settlements), as evidenced by its diverse range of megalithic art, as
well as the large number of megaliths used in the construction of its
shrines. Up until its excavation in the 1990s (Schmidt, 2000), archaeol- Fig. 7. Predicted sea-level change vs. time, calculated for the median latitude of the Adven-
ture Plateau. Intercepted value along the x axis indicates the age corresponding to the
ogists believed that only properly settled farming communities were ca-
water depth of the outer ridge summit.
pable of building a monumental complex like Göbekli Tepe. It contains
the oldest art involving stone structures, including numerous reliefs of
animals. Before the discovery of this monumental complex, the two Sicilian caves testify that the island was permanently colonized by
Neolithic stone temples of Ġgantija in Gozo (Maltese Islands), un- Upper Palaeolithic hunter-gatherers (approximately 13,500 year B.P.;
matched by any other architectural construction in the Mediterra- D'Amore et al., 2009). The migration from mainland Europe to Sicily
nean region, represented the oldest man-made religious structures took probably place between 27,000 and 17,000 year B.P., thanks to the
in the world (Trump, 2002). Regarding the underwater sites known emergence of a rocky continental bridge between the Sicilian coast and
to date, the PVB site is older than the Neolithic Atlit Yam site off the Italian peninsula (Antonioli et al., 2014). These ancient inhabitants
the north coast of Israel, dated between 6900 and 6300 B.C. (Galili may have also colonized and settled the various islands of the archipela-
and Nir, 1993) and now lying between 8 and 12 m beneath the sea go, driven by a suitable climate and a favourable geographical position
surface, and the city of Pavlopetri, situated 3 ÷ 4 m underwater off as a privileged route of communication. These islands thus have repre-
the coast of southern Peloponnese (Greece), until now considered sented not barriers but gateways to human movement and contact.
the world oldest (about 5000 years old) submerged archaeological The idea that early human ancestors once lived at the sea-floor of
town. modern seas easily fascinates and attracts our imagination. What is
Göbekli Tepe has revolutionised archaeological and anthropological more surprising, and until recently poorly recognized, is that an exten-
understanding of the Middle East Mesolithic. It demonstrates that the sive archaeological record of early settlements still remains on the sea-
construction of a monumental complex was within the capability of a floor of our continental shelves. Almost everything that we do know
hunter-gatherer society, although scientists do not yet understand ex- about prehistoric cultures derives from settlements that are now on
actly how its builders managed to mobilize and feed a force large land, and that were tens to hundreds of kilometres distant from the
enough to complete the project. It's worth noting, for instance, that dur- coastline when they were occupied. The vast majority of marine geo-
ing the first two phases of construction, over two hundred large pillars, physicist and archaeologists have now realized that to trace the origins
each weighing up to 20 t, were erected and topped with huge limestone of civilization in the Mediterranean region, it is necessary to focus re-
slabs. No other hunter-gatherer society has been able to match this feat. search in the now submerged shelf areas.
The discovery of the submerged site in the Sicilian Channel may sig-
nificantly expand our knowledge of the earliest civilizations in the Med-
iterranean basin and our views on technological innovation and Acknowledgements
development achieved by the Mesolithic inhabitants. The monolith
found, made of a single, large block, required a cutting, extraction, trans- This research is part of a joint Italian-Israel scientific project financed
portation and installation, which undoubtedly reveals important tech- by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs (grant 3697715AF0). The tech-
nical skills and great engineering. The belief that our ancestors lacked nical and scientific party of the R/V OGS-Explora contributed in acquiring
the knowledge, skill and technology to exploit marine resources or the data. Daniela Accettella, Andrea Cova, Emiliano Gordini and Diego
make sea crossings, must be progressively abandoned. The recent find- Cotterle processed the high-resolution bathymetric data. Franco Coren
ings of submerged archaeology have definitively removed the idea of has provided the logistical support for the activities at sea. Special
“technological primitivism” often attributed to hunter-gatherers coastal thanks go to the personnel from the Arma dei Carabinieri who participat-
settlers. ed in the surveys: F. Sanclemente, M. Masciulli, P. Stella, N. Giacalone, L.
Finally, some considerations should be made regarding the prove- Spagnolo, G. La Cascia (crew of the Mazara del Vallo boat CC-811
nience of these colonizers. Most likely the ancient inhabitants of the Ad- "Pignatelli"); R. Solustri, A. Polito, G. Giacomone, F. Giosia (CC divers
venture Peninsula came from Sicily, with which a direct terrestrial group from Rome). The professional divers Francesco Spaggiari and
connection existed throughout the LGM, as indicated by morphological Fabio Leonardi (Global Underwater Explorers) made some of the footage
reconstructions of palaeo-shorelines. The provenance from North Africa and collected rock samples. Thanks to Mauro Caffau for the microscopic
wouldhavebeen moredifficult because of a nearly 50 km wide seaway analyses on the rock samples, and to Angelo Camerlenghi for his encour-
between the Peninsula and the former Tunisian shore. The timing of the agements and suggestions. The Editor, Chris Hunt, and two anonymous
arrival of the first modern humans to Sicily remains however largely un- reviewers made valuable comments and suggestions which have
known (i.e., Tusa, 1999; Mussi, 2001). Specimens discovered in some helped to significantly improve the manuscript.