Name Ivlia Homeport Odessa Beam 4.6 m (15 ft 1 in) Construction started September 1988 Length 25 m Displacement 26,000 kg | Laid down September 1988 Type bireme Draught 0.8 m (2 ft 7 in) Launched August 1989 Weight 26 tons Draft 80 cm | |
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Ivlia (bireme) is a modern reconstruction of an ancient Greek rowing warship (galley) with oars at two levels and an important example of experimental archaeology. Between 1989 and 1994, this vessel undertook six comprehensive international historical and geographical expeditions in the footsteps of the ancient seafarers.
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Ship construction
The main sponsor of construction of the ship was the Black Sea Shipping Company.
The ship was constructed in 1989 at the Sochi Naval Shipyard, by a team under shipwright Damir S. Shkhalakhov, as well as the active participation of the future crew members. Ivlia was built from Durmast oak and Siberian larch, the oars are of beech. Technical design of the project was carried out by specialists of the Nikolayev University of Shipbuilding. After processing the available scientific data (ancient illustrations on vases and reliefs, written and archaeological sources) members of the Odessa Archaeological Museum, under the leadership of prof. PhD Vladimir N. Stanko, proposed the building of a bireme since in antiquity it had been the most widely used vessel in the northern Black Sea region.
Expedition route
Starting from Odessa (Ukraine) in 1989, Ivlia followed the routes of the ancient mariners on the Black Sea and the Mediterranean as well as the Atlantic, covering more than 3.000 nautical miles in six expedition seasons and visiting over 50 European ports, finally sailing up the river Seine to reach Paris. The expedition's progress was widely covered by the international media. During the time of the voyage, hundreds of articles were published, along with dozens of TV and radio reports. The ship was regularly visited by official delegations and thousands of tourists. Ivlia also took part in international maritime festivals: «Colombo'92» (Genoa, Italy), «Brest’92», «Cancal’93», «Whitbread Round the World Race '93» (Portsmouth) «Vieux Greements’94» (France). The radio constantly broadcast the expedition’s call sign. Over six seasons the crew members included more than 200 people – citizens of Russia, Ukraine, Moldova, France, Greece and Georgia.
Scientific aspects
The research programme of the expedition was developed by the authors of the project, together with the staff of the Odessa Archaeological Museum and the Nikolayev University of Shipbuilding, primarily to address the following objectives:
The practical experience gained on Ivlia's expeditions enabled the project authors to affirm:
In addition, the research programme conducted on board Ivlia included the participation of the Institute of Biology of the Southern Seas, the Institute of Water Transport Hygiene, and other scientific centres of Ukraine. During the expedition, regular measurements were made of environmental parameters and the level of pollution of the sea water, assessments of the state of marine flora and fauna, and a variety of medical experiments were conducted. The data obtained during the six years of voyages are summarized in the articles and books subsequently published by the authors of the project. On the whole, Ivlia’s journey around Europe was a bright page in the study of Hellenic shipbuilding and seafaring, and also contributed to the strengthening of international cultural relations.