New Roman Shipwrecks Bust Ancient Sailing Theory

Greece has tracked down the deepest ancient shipwrecks ever found in the Mediterranean, and they're challenging what we thought we knew about the Romans. While experts previously believed that ancient ships held to the coastlines for safety—instead of venturing into the open sea—the two wrecks disprove that theory, Greek officials say.

The 2nd-century wrecks, found in waters about a mile deep, were discovered off Greece's west coast during the search of the site of a planned Greek-Italian gas pipeline. The AP reports that radar and robot subs turned up pottery and ballast stones in addition to the ships' remains. (More ancient Rome stories.)