Nemi, the mystery at the bottom of the lake

Areas - Music & Performing

Nemi, the mystery at the bottom of the lake History Civilization

Code: 017543

Near Rome there is a little volcanic lake which takes its name from the town of Nemi. The charm of this spot would hardly lead one to think that the waters of the lake concealed a great mystery; since time immemorial, the locals recalled that the remains of two large vessels lay hidden at the bottom of the lake. Yet no historical texts tell of the existence of ships on the lake in Nemi. Was this really the historical memory of the populace, or was it merely a legend? The ships were found in 1446, but only in the 1920s, they were finally recovered, using an extremely complex process: the lake was drained! The hulls of two gigantic vessels emerged: 70 metres in length and over 25 metres across.