Franck Goddio Presents: The Portus Magnus of Alexandria

Live event from University of Oxford | Thursday, 2nd December at 5pm (GMT)

In his lecture “The Portus Magnus of Alexandria”, organized by the Oxford Centre for Maritime Archaeology (OCMA) and livestreamed by the University of Oxford on 2 December at 5pm (GMT), Franck Goddio will present the results of his 25 years of research in today’s eastern port of Alexandria.

In 1996, the European Institute for Underwater Archaeology (IEASM), directed by Franck Goddio, began underwater explorations on the site in cooperation with the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities and with the support of the Hilti Foundation. After an extensive programme of electronic surveys and decades of excavation work an accurate map of the harbour floor has been created allowing numerous archaeological remains buried under the sediment to be located.

Important infrastructures, monuments and numerous artefacts from the city’s legendary Portus Magnus have been identified, and the landscape on which they stood has been revealed. A complete panorama of the Portus Magnus has been developed tracing how the port, with its military and commercial infrastructure, palaces and temples, changed over the years. The picture obtained sometimes considerably differs from descriptions in ancient texts demonstrating the importance of rigorous, scientific investigation into the submerged archaeological evidence.

Franck Goddio’s lecture will be livestreamed by the University of Oxford on Thursday, 2 December at 5pm (GMT).

By supporting the work of Franck Goddio and the IEASM since 1996, the Hilti Foundation has made a lasting contribution to innovation in underwater archaeological research. Associated with the goal of making the results accessible to both the scientific community and the broader public.