--- title: "Archaeologists Just Found 1,000 Roman Artefacts in a Swiss Lake" description: "On a clear day in November 2024, two scuba divers carefully approached something in the lakebed. They both worked with the Octopus Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to underwater exploration, and they were about to make a huge archaeological discovery.\n\nThe pair were diving in Lake Neuchâtel, the largest lake that's entirely within Switzerland. Most divers know it for a surprisingly creepy underwater shark statue. But the lake is also a dumping ground for unexploded bombs left over from World War II. So when a drone flying over the lake picked up an anomaly, that's what everyone assumed was going on. But this was strange enough to justify a dive team, albeit one that needed to move carefully, or this dive might come to a sudden and violent end.\n\nThe anomaly looked like a pile of circles half-buried in white mud. One of the divers turned on a light to take a photo, and the circles suddenly went from a hazy grey to a bright terracotta red. The divers realized that this wasn't a bomb at all, but a pile of broken plates that looked very, very old.\n\nOver the next two years, a team of underwater archaeologists raced to find out the extent of the artifacts on the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel. It was a mission that had to be carried out in absolute secrecy, and had to be finished ASAP—or it might be too late to save them.\n\n## When in Rome\n\nLuckily, these weren't regular scuba divers investigating the drone's anomaly. The pair included Fabien Langenegger, a staff archaeologist for the canton of Neuchâtel. There was also Julian Pfyffer, the founder of the Octopus Foundation. In fact, they were just finishing up a project analyzing vulnerable shipwrecks in the lakebed. If anyone knew what to look for, it was them.\n\nThe pair decided that the artifacts on the bottom of the lake were likely Roman, and probably dated from the time of the early empire. At this time, Rome was well established as a global power. Julius Caesar kicked off this phase in 30 BCE, and his adopted son Augustus became the first official Roman Emperor in 27 BCE. His forty-year reign was followed by his stepson Tiberius. There was then a brief interlude with Caligula, but the Praetorian Guard decided that three years of partying, chariot racing, and murder was more than they could take, so they arranged for his assassination and put his uncle Claudius on the throne. He turned out to be much more normal.\n\nAt this time, Rome was still expanding, but it was already struggling to keep up with its huge amount of territory. Italian soldiers had been chipping away at the Swiss plateau since the time of the Republic, but in the Imperial Era, Augustus decided that controlling the Alps was a matter of national security (apparently, he hadn't forgotten about Hannibal using them to surprise the Roman army about two centuries earlier). By the time of the shipwreck, the mountains were solidly in the hands of the Empire, as was most of modern-day Switzerland.\n\nThis was the early part of what is sometimes called the *Pax Romana*, a time of relative peace and economic prosperity. For the most part, the day-to-day lives of local people didn't change. They kept speaking their regional languages, worked their jobs and ran their communities the same as always. But there were some noticeable changes. Roman-style villages sprung up around Switzerland, along with villas for the upper-class administrators. There were also military outposts staffed with Roman soldiers ready to defend the empire from those barbarians living in what is now Germany. All those newcomers required a lot of stuff, ideally things from home that felt familiar.\n\nThe Romans were so well-known for their expansive road network that it's still common to remark that \"all roads lead to Rome.\" But when it came to moving massive amounts of stuff (something necessary for running an empire), waterways were a much better option. For one, shipments are really heavy, and both humans and animals get tired while hauling amphorae of olive oil or crates of pottery around. Another consideration is that slow-moving trade caravans are easy targets for thieves. Cargo ships were faster, easier, and more secure.\n\nSo, the Romans took advantage of the local geography. Switzerland is covered in lakes and rivers, so a complex trade network of ships criss-crossed the region during their reign. If needed, a ship could be unloaded and the cargo carried across a section of land. Then, it would be reloaded onto a new ship in a new waterway. This was still much easier than trying to move everything by road.\n\nLake Neuchâtel was an especially important part of this network. As an especially long and skinny body of water, it was perfect for moving cargo around. It was also conveniently along the way to one of the new Roman military outposts, a camp called Vindonissa that today is located in the modern town of Windisch.\n\nThe ship probably started its journey at the southern end of the lake, at a port that the Romans called Eburodunum and is now Yverdon-les-Bains. It then set sail across what was, at the time, *Lacus Eburodunensis*. Obviously, most of the shipments reached their destination with no problems. This one did not.\n\n## History of the Lake\n\nOut of all the places that this load of cargo traveled, it's lucky that it sank in Lake Neuchâtel. This particular Swiss lake has unique features that make it a potential treasure trove of historical knowledge, and it's already home to multiple world-shaking archaeological discoveries.\n\nWhile the Swiss Alps are known all over the world for their high peaks and quality skiing, the northwestern side of the country is home to a second mountain range. The Jura mountains are shorter, greener, and less crowded with tourists, which makes them a popular hiking destination. Today, the area is mostly French-speaking, since it sits along the French-Swiss border.\n\nLake Neuchâtel sits at the base of these mountains. It's part of Switzerland's Three Lakes Region, so called because it has three lakes: Morat, Biel, and Neuchâtel. All three are part of the floodplain of the Aare River.\n\nThe problem with living in a floodplain is that things can get unpredictable. For most of human history, this area was prone to flooding. If there was a lot of rain, the area around the lakes would turn into a giant swamp called La Grand Marais. If there was a drought, the waters would dramatically recede, only to come back with a vengeance once it started raining again.\n\nOne of these prolonged drought periods happened in 1857, and a man named Hans Kopp decided to take a walk along the edge of Lake Neuchâtel. He was hired by a local colonel to find some interesting ancient collectibles, and he was about to hit the jackpot. With the lakeshore about two meters (or over six feet) lower than usual, a large area of the northern shallows was completely exposed.\n\nClose to where the lake met the River Zihl, he found a bunch of wooden stakes sticking out of the water. He also found almost forty iron swords. Obviously, everyone else wanted their own cool iron sword and the site was promptly looted every time the water level dropped enough to find it.\n\nBut by the nineteenth century, everyone was pretty sick of these fluctuating water levels. People who came home to a flooded house were opting to move, oftentimes straight out of the country. The Swiss government decided it was time that the lakes picked a size and stuck with it. The result was a huge hydraulic engineering project that cost over five million Swiss francs.\n\nIt was called the Jura water correction, and it involved a series of canals and dams that would do double duty by controlling the water levels and draining the marshes. In the end, it was successful in controlling the flow of the Aare River and preventing floods. However, a side effect of the project was that all three lakes shrunk.\n\nBy the time the Jura water correction was finished, archaeologists assumed that all the artifacts at the north end of the lake were gone. They were also pretty sure that the wooden stakes sticking out of the water were the remains of an Iron Age lake dwelling, a kind of prehistoric house that was built on marshy ground and raised on poles to protect it from flooding. Overall, an interesting site, if it hadn't been looted.\n\nHowever, the archaeologists decided it was worth it to take a look. To their shock, the swords were only the tip of the iceberg. Now that the site was dried out, excavations revealed two bridges, five houses, an assortment of shields, brooches, tools, chariot parts, and an additional over one hundred swords.\n\nIt turns out that Lake Neuchâtel is amazing at preserving historical artifacts. The cold dark waters and dense mud protected the wood and animal bones at the Iron Age site by keeping them hidden from sunlight, bacteria, oxygen, and the most destructive force of all: humans. It's kind of like a giant refrigerator with the door shut.\n\nAlso, the lakebed contains a lot of chalk, which is alkaline. That is the opposite of acidic. There are a couple reasons why this is good for preservation. One, bacteria and microorganisms that consume organic material aren't interested in this kind of environment. Two, if there isn't any oxygen to mess up the process, the chemistry in a chalk-rich area allows some materials to become encrusted with a protective coating of mineral salts.\n\nToday, the site is called La Tène. Over time, this became the name of an entire group of archaeologically similar people throughout Europe known as the La Tène culture. Since this was such an extraordinary archaeological find, a museum was created to house the artifacts. Today, the Laténium Park and Museum showcases items that cover fifty thousand years of local history, with the obvious highlight being those from the nearby La Tène site.\n\nBut the archaeological discoveries of Lake Neuchâtel were far from over. In fact, now that archaeologists understood exactly how good the preservation conditions were, they wondered what else that chalky mud might be hiding.\n\n## Finding the Cargo Ship\n\nHowever, in the modern day, the most likely thing you'll find in Switzerland's alpine lakes is bombs. Lots and lots of bombs.\n\nThe reason why actually goes back to the country's most iconic personality trait: neutrality. Since 1815, Switzerland has refused to partake in military alliances or external conflicts. But that doesn't mean they planned on rolling over if one of their neighbors decided to invade. And considering that it shares a border with Germany, the Swiss government felt pretty justified cranking out weapons during the 1930s and 40s for a \"just in case\" scenario.\n\nMiraculously, however, Switzerland made it through World War II without having to use any of their weapons, so the government now had a giant stockpile of dangerous stuff they didn't need anymore. The easiest solution was to chuck them into alpine lakes. The government assumed that the water would neutralize them, but modern studies indicate that is not always the case. Currently, the Swiss government is looking into proposals on how to best clean up this mess.\n\nLake Neuchâtel has an especially large amount of these explosives. As a result, if there's something that looks a bit off in the lakebed, that's probably what it is. It's certainly what everyone assumed in November 2024, when a drone flew over the lake to monitor water quality and ecological health. However, the Cantonal Archaeology Office of Neuchâtel kept an eye on it anyway, just in case it found something interesting.\n\nThe drone footage revealed a dark patch and divers were sent to see if it was yet-more unexploded ordnance from World War II. But when they surfaced, it was better news than anyone had dared hope. The dark patch was a load of cargo, and it looked like it might be Roman.\n\nAt the point of the anomaly, the lake was only eight meters or twenty-six feet deep. Only faint traces of light could make it so far down. The divers had to quickly figure out what they were looking at, how much stuff there was, and most importantly, whether or not it would still be there if they came back later.\n\nThe divers grabbed a few of the artifacts to bring to the surface, just enough to get an idea of the site. Since Lake Neuchâtel is especially good at preserving wood, they made sure to grab a piece. Then their time at the wreck was done. It was time to go to the lab and figure out what was going on here.\n\nThe wood, they believed, would be key in confirming that this was indeed a Roman shipwreck. Now that they had it above the surface, they could date it using dendrochronology. Since the wood had once been a tree, the archaeologists could analyze the pattern of the growth rings. While the tree is still growing, it will create wide rings for years with good conditions and small, tight rings for years with bad ones. By lining up the pattern of growth rings with trees that are confirmed to come from different eras, it's possible to figure out exactly when this particular tree was cut down.\n\nThe dendrochronology date came back as somewhere between 50 BCE and 50 CE. That covered pretty much the entire early Roman period of Switzerland. Combined with the artifacts that were clearly Roman, there was no longer any doubt that this was a Roman cargo ship.\n\n## Excavation\n\nNow that their suspicions were confirmed, the Octopus Foundation and its collaborators had to keep this a secret. They knew about what happened to the La Tène site and believed that if word got out, people would start tearing through the underwater cargo to find a cool artifact to take home. Or worse, to sell.\n\nWhile artifacts are undeniably interesting, they aren't the most important part of archaeology. An object on its own can only tell you so much. The \"context,\" or where the artifact is found, is by far the most interesting thing about it. On land, the layer of dirt that it came from can provide important clues about how old it is. Also, the artifacts that are found around it can tell a bigger story. After all, a brick is a lot more interesting when it's part of a wall.\n\nThe Octopus Foundation had to keep their discovery secret for months. They only told people who could be trusted, mostly other archaeologists. Everyone knew that they would eventually have to go back. The artifacts were just laying there on the bottom of the lakebed, and they definitely hadn't been visible for long, because someone would have found them earlier.\n\nEveryone knew what was to blame for this sudden reemergence of Roman artifacts: the Jura water correction. In fact, one reason for the drone surveys was that it's currently changing all three lakes in the region.\n\nThe problem is that rivers aren't just water. As they flow from high points to low points, they collect and carry sediment like soil and sand. This gets deposited in a floodplain. However, since everyone was in agreement that no one liked the Aare River floodplain, the Jura water correction ended this natural process. As a result, the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel is eroding, and this has the fun byproduct of revealing shipwrecks.\n\nThe Octopus Foundation was worried that if they waited too long, the artifacts would erode away like the sediment. They also knew it was only a matter of time before someone spotted them and took some home as a souvenir, or someone accidentally dragged a boat anchor or a fishing net through the site. They needed to bring everything to the surface as soon as possible.\n\nIn March 2025, a team of thirteen divers went back into Lake Neuchâtel to investigate the wreck. They found that the artifacts were concentrated in a sixty meter by twenty-five meter area, or two hundred by eighty feet. The most numerous items were ceramic plates, cups, bowls and goblets. Many of them looked similar, like they were mass produced for a large audience.\n\nBut perhaps the most interesting thing about the shipwreck was what the divers didn't see—the ship. Despite the fact that this massive amount of cargo couldn't have ended up at the bottom of the lake any other way, there was absolutely no trace of the vessel that had brought it there.\n\nObviously, something had gone horribly wrong on its voyage across the lake. The heavy load of terracotta plates and bowls somehow ended up sinking and stayed in place for almost two thousand years. Something else, clearly, had happened to the ship.\n\nJulian Pfyffer, the founder of the Octopus Foundation, told *ArtNet News*, \"My positive way of looking at things makes me feel that maybe relieved by the heavy weight of the cargo, the sailors and Roman soldiers saved their boat.\"\n\nOther archaeologists, however, aren't so optimistic. They think that it's more likely that after the ship sank, it broke apart and the wooden fragments floated to the surface. There, they were torn apart by the mechanical pressure of the waves and by bacteria and other wood-boring organisms. After a few decades, there would have been nothing left of it.\n\nEither way, the ship is gone. All that remains is the cargo that it was carrying.\n\n## The Artifacts\n\nDuring two weeks in March 2025, the dive team brought over one hundred and fifty artifacts to the surface. Most of them were ceramic tableware, like plates, bowls, cups, and goblets. The archaeologists were thrilled with this discovery, because these are not the kinds of things they normally find in their excavations.\n\nUnderwater archaeology is an important piece in the jigsaw puzzle that is figuring out the past. It's joked that history is reading dead people's mail and archaeology is going through dead people's garbage. While that's an oversimplification, it's true that a lot of the artifacts found on land are broken. That's why it's so exciting when someone stumbles across an undisturbed tomb or a hidden cache of items. They're a deviation from the norm.\n\nUnderwater sites, however, are different. They're like a time capsule. Shipwrecks are usually chock-full of artifacts that never made it to the trash. In the right conditions, there might even be clothing or personal items that literally exist nowhere else in the world. And if the cargo is intact, there may be large numbers of artifacts that were never even used at all.\n\nIn archaeological terms, the pottery from the Roman cargo ship was basically brand-new. This is quite exciting, because it meant that from now on, these would be the textbook examples of what pottery looks like for this time period.\n\nThere were also some more unusual finds amongst all that tableware. There were pieces of two amphorae, which are large two-handled jugs that were used to transport wine and olive oil. The team at the Octopus Foundation are confident these were used for olive oil. Even more interesting, it was likely produced in Spain and shipped to Switzerland.\n\nThe team also found parts of a harness, the kind used to attach horses to a wagon. Nearby were two amazingly preserved wood and metal spoked wheels. They were likely part of a chariot, a small two-wheeled vehicle that normally was used for military campaigns or in racing events. This was an extraordinary find; nothing like this had ever been discovered in Switzerland before.\n\nBy the time the two week excavation was over, it was clear that the team needed to plan another one as soon as possible. There were still hundreds of artifacts on the bottom of the lake, and no one had a good explanation as to why a ship loaded with mostly tableware was also carrying a Roman chariot.\n\nHowever, there were other shipwrecks in Lake Neuchâtel that needed attention. The Octopus Foundation installed underwater cameras that would let them know if anything happened to the precious cargo. Then, they crossed their fingers and hoped everything would still be there when they returned.\n\n## Final Excavation\n\nIn the months between the excavations, a team of local archaeologists and conservators from the Laténium Museum examined the artifacts removed from the lakebed. To avoid giving the two thousand-year-old artifacts too much of a shock, the team kept them submerged in a pool of water that was cooled to the same temperature as the lake.\n\nOne by one, the team removed the artifacts, stabilized them, and took a closer look. All that dirt, sand, and clay floating around during the excavation can make it difficult to make out small but important details. Preliminary analysis suggests that the pottery was made in Switzerland, but there is a lot of it and not everything has been examined yet.\n\nThe next set of excavations was scheduled for a year later, in March 2026. The plan was to retrieve all the Roman cargo still at the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel. There would be nineteen excavation units to carefully document each item before bringing it to the surface, and each unit was four meters (or thirteen feet) square. It was an enormous undertaking, but if they wanted to save the artifacts, this might be their last opportunity.\n\nBy the time the excavation was finished, over one thousand artifacts were removed from Lake Neuchâtel. The team spent hours on the painstaking work of removing each ceramic item one at a time, and they were rewarded by finding fragments of the wooden crates that they were once packaged in. There were even bits of straw still stuffed between the items as cushioning. The wood and straw is currently being analyzed at the Laténium Museum. So far, a piece of a crate has been dated with dendrochronology to 17 CE.\n\nIn addition to the pottery, there were also some unusual items that revealed a lot of what was happening on this Roman cargo ship. There was the jaw-dropping discovery of a wicker basket. In any other situation, a delicate item like this would never have survived for two thousand years. However, the previously mentioned amazing preservation conditions meant that it was protected by the chalky mud. And even more incredibly, the basket still had items in it. It was more pottery, but it looked completely different from the mass-produced stuff the archaeologists were finding in spades. This was probably what the ship's crew was using at mealtimes as they voyaged across the lake. Currently, the Laténium Museum is working to pull food residue from the inside of the dishes.\n\nWhile the basket is definitely the favorite of archaeologists, the general public is more excited about something else. It turned out that Lake Neuchâtel had more swords to offer. Specifically, two Roman shortswords called *gladii*. One of them was still tucked into a wood-and-metal scabbard, which is incredibly rare and very exciting.\n\nAnd on top of just looking cool, these swords provide an important clue about what was going on with this ship. See, ordinary Roman citizens weren't walking around with *gladii* on their belts. They were distributed to soldiers as part of their gear. If the ship had swords on it when it went down, that probably meant there were Roman soldiers onboard.\n\nAnother discovery solidified this theory even further. The dive team found a fibula, a type of brooch that looks kind of like a modern safety pin. This type of pin was part of a soldier's uniform and was used to fasten a cloak around the shoulders. This type of design was implemented during the reign of Emperor Tiberius, which means the ship went down sometime between 20 and 50 CE.\n\nIn addition to the sword and fibula, the dive team also found a pickaxe and a belt buckle that also seemed to belong to soldiers. Clearly, this wasn't an ordinary merchant ship. It was associated with the military in some way, and the soldiers on board were likely an official escort.\n\nThe Octopus Foundation believes that the ship was headed to the north end of the lake, probably on their way to the military camp at Vindonissa. It was home to about six thousand Roman soldiers, and they were all expecting their standard-issue Roman gear. That many people would need a literal boatload of tableware to keep their meals running smoothly. Unlucky for them, it never arrived.\n\nAs the ship approached the north end of the lake, something happened that caused the cargo to sink. And that's where it stayed for two thousand years.\n\n## Conclusion\n\nThe discovery of over one thousand artifacts in a Swiss lake is more than just a fascinating discovery, it is a huge step forward in understanding what life was like at the edges of the Roman Empire. The world owes a debt of gratitude to the intrepid team of divers that retrieved the artifacts from the bottom of the lakebed. Not only did they bring them to the surface for the first time in two thousand years, but without them, we never would have known what lay at the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel all that time.\n\n## Key Takeaways\n\n- In November 2024, divers discovered over 1,000 Roman artifacts in Lake Neuchâtel, Switzerland.\n- The artifacts, including ceramic tableware and military items, were remarkably preserved due to the lake's unique conditions.\n- The cargo ship, likely headed to a Roman military camp, sank around 20-50 CE, with no trace of the vessel remaining.\n- The discovery provides significant insights into Roman trade and military operations in early Imperial Switzerland.\n- The Octopus Foundation led the excavation, emphasizing the importance of preserving archaeological context.\n\n## Frequently Asked Questions\n\n### Where were the Roman artifacts found?\n\nThe Roman artifacts were found in Lake Neuchâtel, the largest lake entirely within Switzerland.\n\n### Who discovered the Roman artifacts?\n\nThe Roman artifacts were discovered by two scuba divers working with the Octopus Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to underwater exploration.\n\n### What was the initial assumption about the anomaly found in the lake?\n\nThe initial assumption was that the anomaly was an unexploded bomb from World War II, as Lake Neuchâtel is known for being a dumping ground for such ordnance.\n\n### What was the significance of the Roman period in Switzerland?\n\nDuring the early Roman Empire, Rome was expanding and controlling the Alps was considered a matter of national security. The Romans established military outposts and villages in Switzerland, and used the lakes and rivers for trade.\n\n### Why is Lake Neuchâtel significant for archaeological discoveries?\n\nLake Neuchâtel has unique preservation conditions due to its cold, dark waters and dense, chalky mud, which protects artifacts from sunlight, bacteria, oxygen, and human interference.\n\n### What was the Jura water correction and how did it affect Lake Neuchâtel?\n\nThe Jura water correction was a hydraulic engineering project that controlled the water levels of Lake Neuchâtel and other lakes in the region. It caused the lakes to shrink and revealed previously hidden artifacts.\n\n### What types of artifacts were found in the Roman cargo ship?\n\nThe artifacts included ceramic tableware such as plates, bowls, cups, and goblets, as well as amphorae, parts of a harness, spoked wheels from a chariot, a wicker basket, Roman shortswords, a fibula, a pickaxe, and a belt buckle.\n\n### What was the significance of the wicker basket found in the cargo ship?\n\nThe wicker basket was significant because it contained pottery that looked different from the mass-produced items, likely used by the ship's crew for their meals. It also contained food residue that is being analyzed.\n\n### What was the estimated date of the Roman cargo ship?\n\nThe dendrochronology date of the wood from the cargo ship indicated it was from between 50 BCE and 50 CE, covering the early Roman period in Switzerland.\n\n### What was the estimated date of the wooden crate found in the cargo ship?\n\nA piece of a crate was dated with dendrochronology to 17 CE.\n\n## Sources\n\n- [Original Side Projects video: Archaeologists Just Found 1,000 Roman Artefacts in a Swiss Lake](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRbO7hYkjoo)\n- [Hero image source](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Bronze_age_or_Early_Iron_Age_cairn_tomb_Partille_municipality_Sweden_on_June_21_2026_view_1.jpg) by R. Henrik Nilsson / openverse, by.\n\n## Related Coverage" url: https://sideprojects.pub/article/archaeologists-just-found-1000-roman-artefacts-in-a-swiss-lake.md canonical: https://sideprojects.pub/article/archaeologists-just-found-1000-roman-artefacts-in-a-swiss-lake datePublished: 2026-07-03 dateModified: 2026-07-03 author: - name: Simon Whistler url: https://sideprojects.pub/author/simon-whistler publisher: Side Projects image: "https://media.sideprojects.pub/cdn-cgi/image/width=1600,height=900,fit=cover,quality=80,format=auto/articles/vRbO7hYkjoo/hero.jpg" type: Article contentHash: a0214724ce6d7d31d3ce54f1e61840e43a32b53b9dfaf66dc6814ef31173819a tokens: 7008 summaryUrl: https://sideprojects.pub/article/archaeologists-just-found-1000-roman-artefacts-in-a-swiss-lake.md.summary.md --- On a clear day in November 2024, two scuba divers carefully approached something in the lakebed. They both worked with the Octopus Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to underwater exploration, and they were about to make a huge archaeological discovery. The pair were diving in Lake Neuchâtel, the largest lake that's entirely within Switzerland. Most divers know it for a surprisingly creepy underwater shark statue. But the lake is also a dumping ground for unexploded bombs left over from World War II. So when a drone flying over the lake picked up an anomaly, that's what everyone assumed was going on. But this was strange enough to justify a dive team, albeit one that needed to move carefully, or this dive might come to a sudden and violent end. The anomaly looked like a pile of circles half-buried in white mud. One of the divers turned on a light to take a photo, and the circles suddenly went from a hazy grey to a bright terracotta red. The divers realized that this wasn't a bomb at all, but a pile of broken plates that looked very, very old. Over the next two years, a team of underwater archaeologists raced to find out the extent of the artifacts on the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel. It was a mission that had to be carried out in absolute secrecy, and had to be finished ASAP—or it might be too late to save them. ## When in Rome Luckily, these weren't regular scuba divers investigating the drone's anomaly. The pair included Fabien Langenegger, a staff archaeologist for the canton of Neuchâtel. There was also Julian Pfyffer, the founder of the Octopus Foundation. In fact, they were just finishing up a project analyzing vulnerable shipwrecks in the lakebed. If anyone knew what to look for, it was them. The pair decided that the artifacts on the bottom of the lake were likely Roman, and probably dated from the time of the early empire. At this time, Rome was well established as a global power. Julius Caesar kicked off this phase in 30 BCE, and his adopted son Augustus became the first official Roman Emperor in 27 BCE. His forty-year reign was followed by his stepson Tiberius. There was then a brief interlude with Caligula, but the Praetorian Guard decided that three years of partying, chariot racing, and murder was more than they could take, so they arranged for his assassination and put his uncle Claudius on the throne. He turned out to be much more normal. At this time, Rome was still expanding, but it was already struggling to keep up with its huge amount of territory. Italian soldiers had been chipping away at the Swiss plateau since the time of the Republic, but in the Imperial Era, Augustus decided that controlling the Alps was a matter of national security (apparently, he hadn't forgotten about Hannibal using them to surprise the Roman army about two centuries earlier). By the time of the shipwreck, the mountains were solidly in the hands of the Empire, as was most of modern-day Switzerland. This was the early part of what is sometimes called the *Pax Romana*, a time of relative peace and economic prosperity. For the most part, the day-to-day lives of local people didn't change. They kept speaking their regional languages, worked their jobs and ran their communities the same as always. But there were some noticeable changes. Roman-style villages sprung up around Switzerland, along with villas for the upper-class administrators. There were also military outposts staffed with Roman soldiers ready to defend the empire from those barbarians living in what is now Germany. All those newcomers required a lot of stuff, ideally things from home that felt familiar. The Romans were so well-known for their expansive road network that it's still common to remark that "all roads lead to Rome." But when it came to moving massive amounts of stuff (something necessary for running an empire), waterways were a much better option. For one, shipments are really heavy, and both humans and animals get tired while hauling amphorae of olive oil or crates of pottery around. Another consideration is that slow-moving trade caravans are easy targets for thieves. Cargo ships were faster, easier, and more secure. So, the Romans took advantage of the local geography. Switzerland is covered in lakes and rivers, so a complex trade network of ships criss-crossed the region during their reign. If needed, a ship could be unloaded and the cargo carried across a section of land. Then, it would be reloaded onto a new ship in a new waterway. This was still much easier than trying to move everything by road. Lake Neuchâtel was an especially important part of this network. As an especially long and skinny body of water, it was perfect for moving cargo around. It was also conveniently along the way to one of the new Roman military outposts, a camp called Vindonissa that today is located in the modern town of Windisch. The ship probably started its journey at the southern end of the lake, at a port that the Romans called Eburodunum and is now Yverdon-les-Bains. It then set sail across what was, at the time, *Lacus Eburodunensis*. Obviously, most of the shipments reached their destination with no problems. This one did not. ## History of the Lake Out of all the places that this load of cargo traveled, it's lucky that it sank in Lake Neuchâtel. This particular Swiss lake has unique features that make it a potential treasure trove of historical knowledge, and it's already home to multiple world-shaking archaeological discoveries. While the Swiss Alps are known all over the world for their high peaks and quality skiing, the northwestern side of the country is home to a second mountain range. The Jura mountains are shorter, greener, and less crowded with tourists, which makes them a popular hiking destination. Today, the area is mostly French-speaking, since it sits along the French-Swiss border. Lake Neuchâtel sits at the base of these mountains. It's part of Switzerland's Three Lakes Region, so called because it has three lakes: Morat, Biel, and Neuchâtel. All three are part of the floodplain of the Aare River. The problem with living in a floodplain is that things can get unpredictable. For most of human history, this area was prone to flooding. If there was a lot of rain, the area around the lakes would turn into a giant swamp called La Grand Marais. If there was a drought, the waters would dramatically recede, only to come back with a vengeance once it started raining again. One of these prolonged drought periods happened in 1857, and a man named Hans Kopp decided to take a walk along the edge of Lake Neuchâtel. He was hired by a local colonel to find some interesting ancient collectibles, and he was about to hit the jackpot. With the lakeshore about two meters (or over six feet) lower than usual, a large area of the northern shallows was completely exposed. Close to where the lake met the River Zihl, he found a bunch of wooden stakes sticking out of the water. He also found almost forty iron swords. Obviously, everyone else wanted their own cool iron sword and the site was promptly looted every time the water level dropped enough to find it. But by the nineteenth century, everyone was pretty sick of these fluctuating water levels. People who came home to a flooded house were opting to move, oftentimes straight out of the country. The Swiss government decided it was time that the lakes picked a size and stuck with it. The result was a huge hydraulic engineering project that cost over five million Swiss francs. It was called the Jura water correction, and it involved a series of canals and dams that would do double duty by controlling the water levels and draining the marshes. In the end, it was successful in controlling the flow of the Aare River and preventing floods. However, a side effect of the project was that all three lakes shrunk. By the time the Jura water correction was finished, archaeologists assumed that all the artifacts at the north end of the lake were gone. They were also pretty sure that the wooden stakes sticking out of the water were the remains of an Iron Age lake dwelling, a kind of prehistoric house that was built on marshy ground and raised on poles to protect it from flooding. Overall, an interesting site, if it hadn't been looted. However, the archaeologists decided it was worth it to take a look. To their shock, the swords were only the tip of the iceberg. Now that the site was dried out, excavations revealed two bridges, five houses, an assortment of shields, brooches, tools, chariot parts, and an additional over one hundred swords. It turns out that Lake Neuchâtel is amazing at preserving historical artifacts. The cold dark waters and dense mud protected the wood and animal bones at the Iron Age site by keeping them hidden from sunlight, bacteria, oxygen, and the most destructive force of all: humans. It's kind of like a giant refrigerator with the door shut. Also, the lakebed contains a lot of chalk, which is alkaline. That is the opposite of acidic. There are a couple reasons why this is good for preservation. One, bacteria and microorganisms that consume organic material aren't interested in this kind of environment. Two, if there isn't any oxygen to mess up the process, the chemistry in a chalk-rich area allows some materials to become encrusted with a protective coating of mineral salts. Today, the site is called La Tène. Over time, this became the name of an entire group of archaeologically similar people throughout Europe known as the La Tène culture. Since this was such an extraordinary archaeological find, a museum was created to house the artifacts. Today, the Laténium Park and Museum showcases items that cover fifty thousand years of local history, with the obvious highlight being those from the nearby La Tène site. But the archaeological discoveries of Lake Neuchâtel were far from over. In fact, now that archaeologists understood exactly how good the preservation conditions were, they wondered what else that chalky mud might be hiding. ## Finding the Cargo Ship However, in the modern day, the most likely thing you'll find in Switzerland's alpine lakes is bombs. Lots and lots of bombs. The reason why actually goes back to the country's most iconic personality trait: neutrality. Since 1815, Switzerland has refused to partake in military alliances or external conflicts. But that doesn't mean they planned on rolling over if one of their neighbors decided to invade. And considering that it shares a border with Germany, the Swiss government felt pretty justified cranking out weapons during the 1930s and 40s for a "just in case" scenario. Miraculously, however, Switzerland made it through World War II without having to use any of their weapons, so the government now had a giant stockpile of dangerous stuff they didn't need anymore. The easiest solution was to chuck them into alpine lakes. The government assumed that the water would neutralize them, but modern studies indicate that is not always the case. Currently, the Swiss government is looking into proposals on how to best clean up this mess. Lake Neuchâtel has an especially large amount of these explosives. As a result, if there's something that looks a bit off in the lakebed, that's probably what it is. It's certainly what everyone assumed in November 2024, when a drone flew over the lake to monitor water quality and ecological health. However, the Cantonal Archaeology Office of Neuchâtel kept an eye on it anyway, just in case it found something interesting. The drone footage revealed a dark patch and divers were sent to see if it was yet-more unexploded ordnance from World War II. But when they surfaced, it was better news than anyone had dared hope. The dark patch was a load of cargo, and it looked like it might be Roman. At the point of the anomaly, the lake was only eight meters or twenty-six feet deep. Only faint traces of light could make it so far down. The divers had to quickly figure out what they were looking at, how much stuff there was, and most importantly, whether or not it would still be there if they came back later. The divers grabbed a few of the artifacts to bring to the surface, just enough to get an idea of the site. Since Lake Neuchâtel is especially good at preserving wood, they made sure to grab a piece. Then their time at the wreck was done. It was time to go to the lab and figure out what was going on here. The wood, they believed, would be key in confirming that this was indeed a Roman shipwreck. Now that they had it above the surface, they could date it using dendrochronology. Since the wood had once been a tree, the archaeologists could analyze the pattern of the growth rings. While the tree is still growing, it will create wide rings for years with good conditions and small, tight rings for years with bad ones. By lining up the pattern of growth rings with trees that are confirmed to come from different eras, it's possible to figure out exactly when this particular tree was cut down. The dendrochronology date came back as somewhere between 50 BCE and 50 CE. That covered pretty much the entire early Roman period of Switzerland. Combined with the artifacts that were clearly Roman, there was no longer any doubt that this was a Roman cargo ship. ## Excavation Now that their suspicions were confirmed, the Octopus Foundation and its collaborators had to keep this a secret. They knew about what happened to the La Tène site and believed that if word got out, people would start tearing through the underwater cargo to find a cool artifact to take home. Or worse, to sell. While artifacts are undeniably interesting, they aren't the most important part of archaeology. An object on its own can only tell you so much. The "context," or where the artifact is found, is by far the most interesting thing about it. On land, the layer of dirt that it came from can provide important clues about how old it is. Also, the artifacts that are found around it can tell a bigger story. After all, a brick is a lot more interesting when it's part of a wall. The Octopus Foundation had to keep their discovery secret for months. They only told people who could be trusted, mostly other archaeologists. Everyone knew that they would eventually have to go back. The artifacts were just laying there on the bottom of the lakebed, and they definitely hadn't been visible for long, because someone would have found them earlier. Everyone knew what was to blame for this sudden reemergence of Roman artifacts: the Jura water correction. In fact, one reason for the drone surveys was that it's currently changing all three lakes in the region. The problem is that rivers aren't just water. As they flow from high points to low points, they collect and carry sediment like soil and sand. This gets deposited in a floodplain. However, since everyone was in agreement that no one liked the Aare River floodplain, the Jura water correction ended this natural process. As a result, the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel is eroding, and this has the fun byproduct of revealing shipwrecks. The Octopus Foundation was worried that if they waited too long, the artifacts would erode away like the sediment. They also knew it was only a matter of time before someone spotted them and took some home as a souvenir, or someone accidentally dragged a boat anchor or a fishing net through the site. They needed to bring everything to the surface as soon as possible. In March 2025, a team of thirteen divers went back into Lake Neuchâtel to investigate the wreck. They found that the artifacts were concentrated in a sixty meter by twenty-five meter area, or two hundred by eighty feet. The most numerous items were ceramic plates, cups, bowls and goblets. Many of them looked similar, like they were mass produced for a large audience. But perhaps the most interesting thing about the shipwreck was what the divers didn't see—the ship. Despite the fact that this massive amount of cargo couldn't have ended up at the bottom of the lake any other way, there was absolutely no trace of the vessel that had brought it there. Obviously, something had gone horribly wrong on its voyage across the lake. The heavy load of terracotta plates and bowls somehow ended up sinking and stayed in place for almost two thousand years. Something else, clearly, had happened to the ship. Julian Pfyffer, the founder of the Octopus Foundation, told *ArtNet News*, "My positive way of looking at things makes me feel that maybe relieved by the heavy weight of the cargo, the sailors and Roman soldiers saved their boat." Other archaeologists, however, aren't so optimistic. They think that it's more likely that after the ship sank, it broke apart and the wooden fragments floated to the surface. There, they were torn apart by the mechanical pressure of the waves and by bacteria and other wood-boring organisms. After a few decades, there would have been nothing left of it. Either way, the ship is gone. All that remains is the cargo that it was carrying. ## The Artifacts During two weeks in March 2025, the dive team brought over one hundred and fifty artifacts to the surface. Most of them were ceramic tableware, like plates, bowls, cups, and goblets. The archaeologists were thrilled with this discovery, because these are not the kinds of things they normally find in their excavations. Underwater archaeology is an important piece in the jigsaw puzzle that is figuring out the past. It's joked that history is reading dead people's mail and archaeology is going through dead people's garbage. While that's an oversimplification, it's true that a lot of the artifacts found on land are broken. That's why it's so exciting when someone stumbles across an undisturbed tomb or a hidden cache of items. They're a deviation from the norm. Underwater sites, however, are different. They're like a time capsule. Shipwrecks are usually chock-full of artifacts that never made it to the trash. In the right conditions, there might even be clothing or personal items that literally exist nowhere else in the world. And if the cargo is intact, there may be large numbers of artifacts that were never even used at all. In archaeological terms, the pottery from the Roman cargo ship was basically brand-new. This is quite exciting, because it meant that from now on, these would be the textbook examples of what pottery looks like for this time period. There were also some more unusual finds amongst all that tableware. There were pieces of two amphorae, which are large two-handled jugs that were used to transport wine and olive oil. The team at the Octopus Foundation are confident these were used for olive oil. Even more interesting, it was likely produced in Spain and shipped to Switzerland. The team also found parts of a harness, the kind used to attach horses to a wagon. Nearby were two amazingly preserved wood and metal spoked wheels. They were likely part of a chariot, a small two-wheeled vehicle that normally was used for military campaigns or in racing events. This was an extraordinary find; nothing like this had ever been discovered in Switzerland before. By the time the two week excavation was over, it was clear that the team needed to plan another one as soon as possible. There were still hundreds of artifacts on the bottom of the lake, and no one had a good explanation as to why a ship loaded with mostly tableware was also carrying a Roman chariot. However, there were other shipwrecks in Lake Neuchâtel that needed attention. The Octopus Foundation installed underwater cameras that would let them know if anything happened to the precious cargo. Then, they crossed their fingers and hoped everything would still be there when they returned. ## Final Excavation In the months between the excavations, a team of local archaeologists and conservators from the Laténium Museum examined the artifacts removed from the lakebed. To avoid giving the two thousand-year-old artifacts too much of a shock, the team kept them submerged in a pool of water that was cooled to the same temperature as the lake. One by one, the team removed the artifacts, stabilized them, and took a closer look. All that dirt, sand, and clay floating around during the excavation can make it difficult to make out small but important details. Preliminary analysis suggests that the pottery was made in Switzerland, but there is a lot of it and not everything has been examined yet. The next set of excavations was scheduled for a year later, in March 2026. The plan was to retrieve all the Roman cargo still at the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel. There would be nineteen excavation units to carefully document each item before bringing it to the surface, and each unit was four meters (or thirteen feet) square. It was an enormous undertaking, but if they wanted to save the artifacts, this might be their last opportunity. By the time the excavation was finished, over one thousand artifacts were removed from Lake Neuchâtel. The team spent hours on the painstaking work of removing each ceramic item one at a time, and they were rewarded by finding fragments of the wooden crates that they were once packaged in. There were even bits of straw still stuffed between the items as cushioning. The wood and straw is currently being analyzed at the Laténium Museum. So far, a piece of a crate has been dated with dendrochronology to 17 CE. In addition to the pottery, there were also some unusual items that revealed a lot of what was happening on this Roman cargo ship. There was the jaw-dropping discovery of a wicker basket. In any other situation, a delicate item like this would never have survived for two thousand years. However, the previously mentioned amazing preservation conditions meant that it was protected by the chalky mud. And even more incredibly, the basket still had items in it. It was more pottery, but it looked completely different from the mass-produced stuff the archaeologists were finding in spades. This was probably what the ship's crew was using at mealtimes as they voyaged across the lake. Currently, the Laténium Museum is working to pull food residue from the inside of the dishes. While the basket is definitely the favorite of archaeologists, the general public is more excited about something else. It turned out that Lake Neuchâtel had more swords to offer. Specifically, two Roman shortswords called *gladii*. One of them was still tucked into a wood-and-metal scabbard, which is incredibly rare and very exciting. And on top of just looking cool, these swords provide an important clue about what was going on with this ship. See, ordinary Roman citizens weren't walking around with *gladii* on their belts. They were distributed to soldiers as part of their gear. If the ship had swords on it when it went down, that probably meant there were Roman soldiers onboard. Another discovery solidified this theory even further. The dive team found a fibula, a type of brooch that looks kind of like a modern safety pin. This type of pin was part of a soldier's uniform and was used to fasten a cloak around the shoulders. This type of design was implemented during the reign of Emperor Tiberius, which means the ship went down sometime between 20 and 50 CE. In addition to the sword and fibula, the dive team also found a pickaxe and a belt buckle that also seemed to belong to soldiers. Clearly, this wasn't an ordinary merchant ship. It was associated with the military in some way, and the soldiers on board were likely an official escort. The Octopus Foundation believes that the ship was headed to the north end of the lake, probably on their way to the military camp at Vindonissa. It was home to about six thousand Roman soldiers, and they were all expecting their standard-issue Roman gear. That many people would need a literal boatload of tableware to keep their meals running smoothly. Unlucky for them, it never arrived. As the ship approached the north end of the lake, something happened that caused the cargo to sink. And that's where it stayed for two thousand years. ## Conclusion The discovery of over one thousand artifacts in a Swiss lake is more than just a fascinating discovery, it is a huge step forward in understanding what life was like at the edges of the Roman Empire. The world owes a debt of gratitude to the intrepid team of divers that retrieved the artifacts from the bottom of the lakebed. Not only did they bring them to the surface for the first time in two thousand years, but without them, we never would have known what lay at the bottom of Lake Neuchâtel all that time. ## Key Takeaways - In November 2024, divers discovered over 1,000 Roman artifacts in Lake Neuchâtel, Switzerland. - The artifacts, including ceramic tableware and military items, were remarkably preserved due to the lake's unique conditions. - The cargo ship, likely headed to a Roman military camp, sank around 20-50 CE, with no trace of the vessel remaining. - The discovery provides significant insights into Roman trade and military operations in early Imperial Switzerland. - The Octopus Foundation led the excavation, emphasizing the importance of preserving archaeological context. ## Frequently Asked Questions ### Where were the Roman artifacts found? The Roman artifacts were found in Lake Neuchâtel, the largest lake entirely within Switzerland. ### Who discovered the Roman artifacts? The Roman artifacts were discovered by two scuba divers working with the Octopus Foundation, a nonprofit dedicated to underwater exploration. ### What was the initial assumption about the anomaly found in the lake? The initial assumption was that the anomaly was an unexploded bomb from World War II, as Lake Neuchâtel is known for being a dumping ground for such ordnance. ### What was the significance of the Roman period in Switzerland? During the early Roman Empire, Rome was expanding and controlling the Alps was considered a matter of national security. The Romans established military outposts and villages in Switzerland, and used the lakes and rivers for trade. ### Why is Lake Neuchâtel significant for archaeological discoveries? Lake Neuchâtel has unique preservation conditions due to its cold, dark waters and dense, chalky mud, which protects artifacts from sunlight, bacteria, oxygen, and human interference. ### What was the Jura water correction and how did it affect Lake Neuchâtel? The Jura water correction was a hydraulic engineering project that controlled the water levels of Lake Neuchâtel and other lakes in the region. It caused the lakes to shrink and revealed previously hidden artifacts. ### What types of artifacts were found in the Roman cargo ship? The artifacts included ceramic tableware such as plates, bowls, cups, and goblets, as well as amphorae, parts of a harness, spoked wheels from a chariot, a wicker basket, Roman shortswords, a fibula, a pickaxe, and a belt buckle. ### What was the significance of the wicker basket found in the cargo ship? The wicker basket was significant because it contained pottery that looked different from the mass-produced items, likely used by the ship's crew for their meals. It also contained food residue that is being analyzed. ### What was the estimated date of the Roman cargo ship? The dendrochronology date of the wood from the cargo ship indicated it was from between 50 BCE and 50 CE, covering the early Roman period in Switzerland. ### What was the estimated date of the wooden crate found in the cargo ship? A piece of a crate was dated with dendrochronology to 17 CE. ## Sources - [Original Side Projects video: Archaeologists Just Found 1,000 Roman Artefacts in a Swiss Lake](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vRbO7hYkjoo) - [Hero image source](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/04/Bronze_age_or_Early_Iron_Age_cairn_tomb_Partille_municipality_Sweden_on_June_21_2026_view_1.jpg) by R. Henrik Nilsson / openverse, by. ## Related Coverage