1 00:00:05,172 --> 00:00:07,272 (bells ringing). 2 00:00:07,308 --> 00:00:10,442 NARRATOR: A city state like no other, 3 00:00:10,478 --> 00:00:12,144 feared the world over. 4 00:00:14,482 --> 00:00:17,016 JAMES: A rich, powerful republic, 5 00:00:17,051 --> 00:00:19,752 making vast amounts of money, 6 00:00:19,787 --> 00:00:24,156 protected by a massive fleet of the world's fastest war ships. 7 00:00:25,559 --> 00:00:28,327 NARRATOR: Venice would be nothing without its ships, 8 00:00:28,362 --> 00:00:30,929 but their secrets have been lost for centuries. 9 00:00:33,701 --> 00:00:36,802 What can three discoveries reveal about how Venice 10 00:00:36,837 --> 00:00:39,438 becomes a renaissance superpower? 11 00:00:40,374 --> 00:00:42,408 JON: This could give us a clue into how the Venetians 12 00:00:42,443 --> 00:00:44,877 ruled for almost 500 years. 13 00:00:46,881 --> 00:00:49,681 NARRATOR: And why it finally falls into ruin. 14 00:00:50,918 --> 00:00:55,654 GIOVANNI: There have been extended excavations and they found thousands of bodies. 15 00:00:57,691 --> 00:01:00,726 JON: In a very real sense, the history of Venice lies underwater. 16 00:01:02,163 --> 00:01:03,495 We just have to find it. 17 00:01:15,142 --> 00:01:17,226 NARRATOR: A city of high culture, 18 00:01:17,278 --> 00:01:21,380 magnificent architecture, stunning natural beauty, 19 00:01:22,383 --> 00:01:25,684 made possible by a past steeped in conquest. 20 00:01:31,325 --> 00:01:33,625 JON At its height, 700 years ago, 21 00:01:33,661 --> 00:01:36,261 Venice controlled an area spanning 1,000 miles, 22 00:01:36,297 --> 00:01:38,931 and its influence stretched across three continents. 23 00:01:40,367 --> 00:01:42,734 It was a maritime empire of unequalled power, 24 00:01:42,770 --> 00:01:44,503 and the wealthiest city in Western Europe. 25 00:01:48,275 --> 00:01:52,845 JAMES: The key to Venice is its watercraft, 26 00:01:54,415 --> 00:01:57,449 and while many people know of the famous gondolas, 27 00:01:57,485 --> 00:02:01,520 the true Venetian vessel is the galley. 28 00:02:01,956 --> 00:02:07,059 These ships dominate the Mediterranean for centuries, 29 00:02:07,094 --> 00:02:11,096 and are key to Venice becoming a naval power, 30 00:02:11,132 --> 00:02:13,999 an economic power and a political power. 31 00:02:17,138 --> 00:02:20,205 NARRATOR: And the seed of this power is the Arsenale, 32 00:02:20,241 --> 00:02:23,142 once the biggest industrial facility in the west. 33 00:02:29,083 --> 00:02:31,283 Hidden behind high walls, 34 00:02:31,318 --> 00:02:35,921 thousands worked to build the best warships the world has ever seen. 35 00:02:40,094 --> 00:02:44,062 PETER: But the master ship builders kept their designs to themselves, 36 00:02:44,498 --> 00:02:46,465 handing them down from father to son, 37 00:02:46,500 --> 00:02:48,033 by word of mouth only. 38 00:02:49,570 --> 00:02:52,838 So we have no blueprints or plans for any galleys, 39 00:02:53,340 --> 00:02:55,741 and we've never been able to find any evidence of one. 40 00:03:01,916 --> 00:03:06,518 STEFANDO: Any archaeologist dreams of discovering a Venetian medieval galley. 41 00:03:08,689 --> 00:03:12,257 I've been living and working in Venice for 25 years. 42 00:03:12,526 --> 00:03:14,593 It's a place that never ceases to amaze me. 43 00:03:17,498 --> 00:03:19,097 NARRATOR: For his entire career, 44 00:03:19,133 --> 00:03:22,167 maritime archaeologist, Stefano Medas, 45 00:03:22,203 --> 00:03:25,604 has been searching for evidence of Venice's naval power. 46 00:03:26,340 --> 00:03:30,576 He's focused his search in the waters of the lagoon that surrounds the city. 47 00:03:34,515 --> 00:03:37,065 JAMES: The difficulty in excavating Venice's past 48 00:03:37,117 --> 00:03:42,054 is that it sits in a lagoon 200 square miles in size, 49 00:03:42,089 --> 00:03:45,691 and that's three times the area of Washington DC. 50 00:03:47,561 --> 00:03:52,197 JON: Trying to find a ship in these waters is like looking for a needle in a haystack. 51 00:03:52,499 --> 00:03:53,732 Actually, it's worse than that, 52 00:03:53,767 --> 00:03:56,268 it's like looking for a needle in a haystack underwater with 53 00:03:56,303 --> 00:03:57,536 a bucket over your head. 54 00:04:02,276 --> 00:04:06,945 JAMES The city sits on 118 small islands connected by bridges and canals. 55 00:04:08,215 --> 00:04:10,415 From above, it looks beautiful, 56 00:04:10,451 --> 00:04:12,884 but drain the canals and then the lagoon, 57 00:04:12,920 --> 00:04:16,655 and you start to understand why nobody, after 700 years, 58 00:04:16,690 --> 00:04:20,926 has been able to find any shipwrecks of any significance. 59 00:04:22,730 --> 00:04:26,698 Today, over 80% of the lagoon is thick mud, 60 00:04:26,734 --> 00:04:28,634 just about 11% is water. 61 00:04:31,538 --> 00:04:36,008 So even if you were lucky enough to find anything, 62 00:04:36,043 --> 00:04:38,277 it would most likely be trapped under the mud, 63 00:04:39,179 --> 00:04:43,215 and to dredge the lagoon would take 1,000 years. 64 00:04:52,359 --> 00:04:53,925 NARRATOR: Despite the challenges, 65 00:04:53,961 --> 00:04:56,628 Stefano is convinced his quest for evidence of an 66 00:04:56,664 --> 00:04:59,364 ancient warship is worth continuing. 67 00:05:02,569 --> 00:05:04,903 STEFANDO: We know from historical sources, old maps, 68 00:05:04,938 --> 00:05:07,306 that something important was there. 69 00:05:10,210 --> 00:05:11,843 NARRATOR: In 1997, 70 00:05:11,879 --> 00:05:15,047 a team of divers makes a tantalizing discovery. 71 00:05:16,817 --> 00:05:18,250 A piece of wood. 72 00:05:25,109 --> 00:05:26,258 JON It might not sound much 73 00:05:26,276 --> 00:05:28,393 but for archaeologists it's a breakthrough. 74 00:05:29,897 --> 00:05:32,097 A piece of wood could mean a ship. 75 00:05:37,104 --> 00:05:39,304 STEFANDO: It was an extraordinary discovery 76 00:05:39,340 --> 00:05:41,540 that could give us a lot of information. 77 00:05:43,127 --> 00:05:45,911 When you're lucky enough to find a piece of wood, 78 00:05:45,946 --> 00:05:49,414 the first thing to do is to try and find out how old it is, 79 00:05:50,217 --> 00:05:53,819 so it's sent to the lab for radio carbon analysis. 80 00:05:58,225 --> 00:06:03,662 It was amazing because we found out that it was from the 14th Century. 81 00:06:07,167 --> 00:06:08,967 JAMES: Wood from the 14th Century, 82 00:06:09,002 --> 00:06:11,336 for Stefano and the team it's like finding the holy grail. 83 00:06:11,939 --> 00:06:17,843 This is from the time when Venice is at the peak of its naval and economic power. 84 00:06:18,078 --> 00:06:21,446 You couldn't have found a piece from a better period. 85 00:06:23,917 --> 00:06:26,284 JON: So now Stefano knows there's something worth finding 86 00:06:26,320 --> 00:06:27,519 in the mud of the lagoon. 87 00:06:31,208 --> 00:06:32,591 NARRATOR: In 2001, 88 00:06:32,626 --> 00:06:34,760 Stefano and his team begin their search 89 00:06:34,795 --> 00:06:39,131 in the area where the 14th Century piece of wood was discovered. 90 00:06:40,667 --> 00:06:43,502 JAMES: But the problem is, that you're in very muddy water 91 00:06:43,537 --> 00:06:45,904 where you can see nothing the moment you stir the mud up. 92 00:06:50,277 --> 00:06:53,662 NARRATOR: When they do find something, it's something big. 93 00:06:58,018 --> 00:07:01,887 ¶ ¶ 94 00:07:01,922 --> 00:07:06,291 STEFANDO: We started seeing this gigantic hull in perfect condition. 95 00:07:07,528 --> 00:07:10,762 It was very emotional for the whole team of archaeologists. 96 00:07:13,000 --> 00:07:17,068 NARRATOR: To find out if this structure they found could be a long-lost galley, 97 00:07:17,104 --> 00:07:19,638 Stefano turns to the one man who can help him, 98 00:07:20,007 --> 00:07:24,209 Venetian historian and ship expert, Mauro Bondioli. 99 00:07:30,918 --> 00:07:33,084 MAURO: They called me because I was the only person 100 00:07:33,120 --> 00:07:35,720 in the world with the knowledge to study and identify 101 00:07:35,756 --> 00:07:37,355 this particular type of wreck. 102 00:07:41,929 --> 00:07:46,465 When Stefano called, I immediately said okay, 103 00:07:46,500 --> 00:07:50,001 I'll drop everything and tomorrow morning I will be at the lagoon. 104 00:07:53,407 --> 00:07:57,809 I had thought all night about how to identify a galley from other types of ships. 105 00:08:00,814 --> 00:08:03,482 I calculated the length and I said okay, 106 00:08:03,851 --> 00:08:05,450 in this particular point, 107 00:08:05,486 --> 00:08:09,120 we should be able to find a structure typically found in galleys, 108 00:08:09,523 --> 00:08:11,323 which is the mast step. 109 00:08:13,293 --> 00:08:19,030 JAMES: A mast step is a notch cut into the backbone of a ship, 110 00:08:19,066 --> 00:08:20,549 deep down in its hold. 111 00:08:21,134 --> 00:08:23,368 That's a key piece of evidence, 112 00:08:23,403 --> 00:08:27,606 but good luck trying to find that along the entire length of a ship 113 00:08:27,641 --> 00:08:30,442 buried in the mud when you're doing it by feel. 114 00:08:34,231 --> 00:08:36,248 NARRATOR: Armed with this potential lead, 115 00:08:36,283 --> 00:08:38,717 the team returns to the submerged wreck. 116 00:08:40,287 --> 00:08:43,855 MAURO: It was a very long operation because they had to dig through all that mud. 117 00:08:46,093 --> 00:08:48,360 I waited at least three hours for an answer. 118 00:08:52,966 --> 00:08:56,668 Finally, an archaeologist came to the surface and said, 119 00:08:56,703 --> 00:08:59,170 "We've located the structure made this way and that way," 120 00:09:00,774 --> 00:09:03,141 and I told them, "You've found a galley." 121 00:09:06,280 --> 00:09:11,917 STEFANDO: It was obviously extraordinary and exciting because we were certain 122 00:09:12,986 --> 00:09:18,523 it was the first wreck of a galley ever found in the Mediterranean and beyond. 123 00:09:22,596 --> 00:09:24,095 JON: So it's a very, very important find, 124 00:09:24,131 --> 00:09:27,332 and what you want to do is record every single part of that wreck, 125 00:09:27,367 --> 00:09:30,201 inch by inch, do a forensic study of it. 126 00:09:30,237 --> 00:09:33,104 The problem is, this wreck is completely covered in mud, 127 00:09:33,140 --> 00:09:36,041 you can't even see your hand in front of your face under water. 128 00:09:38,745 --> 00:09:42,013 NARRATOR: How will they excavate this medieval fighting galley 129 00:09:42,049 --> 00:09:43,615 from the Venice lagoon? 130 00:09:45,652 --> 00:09:48,553 JON: They're really gonna have to come up with a pretty unique solution. 131 00:10:07,341 --> 00:10:11,876 NARRATOR: Setfano Medas and his team believe the 14th Century galley they found 132 00:10:11,912 --> 00:10:16,715 in the Venice lagoon is so important it needs to be fully excavated. 133 00:10:18,185 --> 00:10:20,785 JAMES: So they come up with this crazy idea. 134 00:10:22,022 --> 00:10:24,422 Why don't we just drain the water away. 135 00:10:25,592 --> 00:10:27,292 And the government agrees. 136 00:10:27,577 --> 00:10:30,295 Even though this is gonna cost a million dollars. 137 00:10:33,200 --> 00:10:36,201 NARRATOR: The strategy create a cofferdam, 138 00:10:36,236 --> 00:10:38,703 a watertight enclosure they can pump dry. 139 00:10:42,175 --> 00:10:46,511 To build it, engineers sink 36 foot long steel girders 140 00:10:46,546 --> 00:10:50,048 vertically into the muddy floor of the lagoon, 141 00:10:50,083 --> 00:10:52,150 300 of them. 142 00:10:55,188 --> 00:10:58,556 JAMES: They have to fit everything together, 143 00:10:58,592 --> 00:11:01,660 girder by girder, perfectly. 144 00:11:02,229 --> 00:11:06,197 The slightest gap, even a fraction of an inch, 145 00:11:06,233 --> 00:11:10,969 can lead this thing to fail and the water can't be drained. 146 00:11:15,475 --> 00:11:16,675 JAMES: Now comes the real test. 147 00:11:17,878 --> 00:11:19,611 It's getting the water out of there. 148 00:11:22,783 --> 00:11:26,685 You have to take huge pumps, and they use five of them, 149 00:11:26,720 --> 00:11:32,957 to remove millions of gallons, and they work around the clock. 150 00:11:39,666 --> 00:11:41,299 STEFANDO: While lowering the water, 151 00:11:41,334 --> 00:11:46,738 we spend days anxiously watching because the water level was dropping so slowly. 152 00:11:48,108 --> 00:11:50,041 JAMES: It takes two weeks to build the wall, 153 00:11:50,077 --> 00:11:53,478 and it takes a full week to get that cofferdam dry. 154 00:11:57,117 --> 00:12:01,019 NARRATOR: What begins to emerge is the outline of a sleek, narrow hull. 155 00:12:04,758 --> 00:12:08,159 But to examine it in detail, they have to move fast. 156 00:12:09,496 --> 00:12:12,063 JON: There's a problem with draining the water away 157 00:12:12,332 --> 00:12:15,600 because it's the water and mud that protected the site in the first place, 158 00:12:15,635 --> 00:12:17,435 and the moment you remove it, 159 00:12:17,471 --> 00:12:19,904 it instantly starts to decay, and actually that can be quite 160 00:12:19,940 --> 00:12:23,308 a quick process, particularly when you expose timbers to the 161 00:12:23,343 --> 00:12:24,609 air for the first time. 162 00:12:26,713 --> 00:12:28,379 JON: So the important thing was to keep it wet, 163 00:12:28,415 --> 00:12:30,815 but also to cover it with a protected canvas, 164 00:12:30,851 --> 00:12:33,218 and they did that each time they were excavating the timbers. 165 00:12:37,491 --> 00:12:40,625 PETER: The excavators worked painstakingly for three months, 166 00:12:40,644 --> 00:12:41,693 little by little 167 00:12:41,728 --> 00:12:44,329 exposing the vessel's unique hydrodynamic shape. 168 00:12:46,833 --> 00:12:49,434 Finally, the 700 year old galley, 169 00:12:49,469 --> 00:12:51,703 the pride of the Venetian fighting fleet, 170 00:12:51,738 --> 00:12:54,839 and the only one in existence today, 171 00:12:54,875 --> 00:12:57,142 is visible in all its glory. 172 00:13:03,483 --> 00:13:06,584 STEFANDO: It was amazing to see the beauty of the hull, 173 00:13:07,387 --> 00:13:09,621 the internal frames and the benches, 174 00:13:10,123 --> 00:13:12,657 seeing it from the stern to the bow, 175 00:13:12,692 --> 00:13:14,425 with its sharp lines. 176 00:13:14,895 --> 00:13:17,796 It was really emotional because it was like going back 177 00:13:17,831 --> 00:13:21,032 for one moment into a 14th Century boat yard. 178 00:13:25,172 --> 00:13:26,971 NARRATOR: The team takes measurements. 179 00:13:28,308 --> 00:13:32,744 The hull is 120 feet long and just 15 feet wide. 180 00:13:36,016 --> 00:13:37,615 For the first time, 181 00:13:37,651 --> 00:13:41,419 they could confirm the number and position of oarsmen powering the vessel. 182 00:13:44,491 --> 00:13:47,258 JAMES: Now, using all the new data from the excavation, 183 00:13:47,294 --> 00:13:50,461 we can bring this lost Venetian galley to life. 184 00:13:55,035 --> 00:13:58,203 When you see this extraordinary design slicing through the water, 185 00:13:58,238 --> 00:14:02,540 you really get a sense of how these warships made Venice a naval superpower. 186 00:14:06,346 --> 00:14:09,113 The engine of this machine? Muscle power. 187 00:14:09,482 --> 00:14:12,383 140 oarsmen rowing together. 188 00:14:14,421 --> 00:14:16,955 More rowers equals more power. 189 00:14:20,026 --> 00:14:22,961 Uniquely, they set three abreasted places, 190 00:14:23,230 --> 00:14:25,663 propelling the hydrodynamic hull through the water 191 00:14:25,699 --> 00:14:27,866 at an astonishing six miles an hour, 192 00:14:29,436 --> 00:14:32,904 making this the fastest ship on the seas at the time. 193 00:14:36,142 --> 00:14:38,076 And because of this speed and power, 194 00:14:38,111 --> 00:14:40,378 a galley could outmaneuver its slower opponents. 195 00:14:41,581 --> 00:14:43,147 That's naval superiority. 196 00:14:48,705 --> 00:14:50,655 MAURO: When a fleet of galleys appeared 197 00:14:50,690 --> 00:14:54,592 with so many oars rowing with an incredible, harmonious rhythm, 198 00:14:55,862 --> 00:14:57,328 like the wings of a bird, 199 00:14:59,733 --> 00:15:01,466 it must've looked fantastic, 200 00:15:02,903 --> 00:15:06,537 really incredible for people who had never seen things like this before. 201 00:15:10,944 --> 00:15:15,280 NARRATOR: The crew can even harness the power of a 65 foot long sail 202 00:15:15,315 --> 00:15:19,117 to carry them effortlessly forward when winds are favorable. 203 00:15:22,455 --> 00:15:24,322 PETER: Before this galley was excavated, 204 00:15:24,357 --> 00:15:26,557 we had no idea how they were made, 205 00:15:26,593 --> 00:15:28,593 we had to guess at the design of these vessels. 206 00:15:30,730 --> 00:15:34,432 Now we know, from the design of the hull to the power of the oarsmen, 207 00:15:34,467 --> 00:15:37,368 these ships were simply years ahead of their time. 208 00:15:38,338 --> 00:15:41,940 JON: They were very maneuverable, sleek, fast, war machines. 209 00:15:47,881 --> 00:15:49,747 JAMES: When the archaeologists are done, 210 00:15:49,783 --> 00:15:51,582 they face two choices. 211 00:15:51,918 --> 00:15:55,186 To raise, recover and chemically treat it to preserve it 212 00:15:55,221 --> 00:15:56,988 at a cost of millions, 213 00:15:57,190 --> 00:15:59,958 or put it back in its time capsule. 214 00:16:02,228 --> 00:16:08,132 They let the water reclaim the cofferdam and bury the ship once again to preserve it. 215 00:16:10,904 --> 00:16:16,674 (bells tolling). 216 00:16:19,212 --> 00:16:20,645 JAMES: 700 years ago, 217 00:16:20,680 --> 00:16:23,181 ports across the Venetian Empire would've been filled 218 00:16:23,216 --> 00:16:26,651 with hundreds of galleys like the one lying in Venice lagoon today. 219 00:16:30,156 --> 00:16:32,790 Guarding the coast, protecting trade routes, 220 00:16:32,826 --> 00:16:37,195 because trade is the beating heart of the Venetian Republic. 221 00:16:41,668 --> 00:16:45,036 MAURO: If you had visited Venice 700 years ago, 222 00:16:45,055 --> 00:16:47,772 you would've found one of the richest markets in the world. 223 00:16:49,542 --> 00:16:51,509 Any type of goods could be found in Venice. 224 00:16:54,414 --> 00:16:55,980 PETER: And making this trade possible are 225 00:16:56,016 --> 00:16:59,484 vast fleets of Venetian merchant ships, 226 00:16:59,519 --> 00:17:02,520 sailing to the far reaches of the Mediterranean into Syria. 227 00:17:04,891 --> 00:17:08,960 JAMES: Historical documents hint that these ships were loaded with riches, 228 00:17:08,995 --> 00:17:11,629 filled to the brim with millions of dollars worth of goods. 229 00:17:13,867 --> 00:17:17,935 The problem is, there's not many physical examples left in the archaeological record. 230 00:17:20,974 --> 00:17:22,740 NARRATOR: So what could a looted wreck, 231 00:17:22,776 --> 00:17:25,043 discovered off the coast of Croatia, 232 00:17:25,078 --> 00:17:27,879 reveal about the wealth of ancient Venice? 233 00:17:29,883 --> 00:17:32,216 IRENA: There was something important but nobody knew 234 00:17:32,252 --> 00:17:35,219 what was actually hiding on the seabed. 235 00:17:51,287 --> 00:17:54,188 IRENA: The second I saw this wreck, I was hooked. 236 00:17:58,294 --> 00:18:00,795 Nothing prepared me for its strange attraction. 237 00:18:04,634 --> 00:18:07,635 NARRATOR: For nine years, Irena Radic Rossi, 238 00:18:07,670 --> 00:18:10,571 has been diving here, off the coast of Croatia. 239 00:18:11,674 --> 00:18:14,008 The reason lies 80 feet below, 240 00:18:14,277 --> 00:18:16,844 a shipwreck first discovered and picked over 241 00:18:16,880 --> 00:18:18,179 decades ago. 242 00:18:22,018 --> 00:18:26,788 IRENA: We know for sure that in the early 60s a fisherman found the shipwreck site. 243 00:18:28,792 --> 00:18:32,126 He kept the information for himself for some time, 244 00:18:32,529 --> 00:18:38,099 and then somehow better divers came across this find 245 00:18:38,134 --> 00:18:40,568 and started to loot it. 246 00:18:44,340 --> 00:18:47,442 JAMES Back then, Croatia is part of communist Yugoslavia, 247 00:18:47,477 --> 00:18:50,344 and so when they hear about this find and the looting, 248 00:18:50,380 --> 00:18:52,713 the government send out a team to take a look. 249 00:18:59,422 --> 00:19:01,522 NARRATOR: Although the wreck has been looted, 250 00:19:01,558 --> 00:19:04,892 the government team still finds some important artifacts. 251 00:19:08,398 --> 00:19:12,900 JAMES: Among the most exciting things they found are objects that have a date on them. 252 00:19:15,805 --> 00:19:20,041 JON: Two cannon were brought up marked with the initials Z and A, 253 00:19:22,078 --> 00:19:25,146 and these initials stand for Zuanne Alberghetti, 254 00:19:25,181 --> 00:19:30,852 and Zuanne Alberghetti was actually a very famous bronze gun maker based in Venice, 255 00:19:30,887 --> 00:19:32,453 and that makes us think instantly there's a 256 00:19:32,489 --> 00:19:34,555 connection between this ship and Venice. 257 00:19:37,393 --> 00:19:40,761 But even more incredibly there's a date inscribed on the 258 00:19:40,797 --> 00:19:44,966 cannons in Roman numerals, and that date is 1582. 259 00:19:49,272 --> 00:19:54,609 And that's a time when Venice has established a place as the number one trading city. 260 00:19:54,644 --> 00:19:57,979 The place where anything and everything is bought and sold, 261 00:19:58,248 --> 00:20:00,815 all at a great profit for the merchants and government. 262 00:20:06,523 --> 00:20:11,092 And so if that ship is from around this crucial period of the 1580s, 263 00:20:11,127 --> 00:20:14,495 the question is, what else can the ship tell us? 264 00:20:18,167 --> 00:20:22,904 IRENA: The guns were an important clue for discovering the story of the shipwreck, 265 00:20:22,939 --> 00:20:25,840 but of course they didn't tell everything. 266 00:20:29,612 --> 00:20:31,546 NARRATOR: Starting in 2012, 267 00:20:31,581 --> 00:20:34,615 Irena and her team begin charting the size and scale 268 00:20:34,651 --> 00:20:36,050 of the plundered wreck 269 00:20:36,553 --> 00:20:39,053 to see if they can figure out what the ship was and 270 00:20:39,088 --> 00:20:40,721 how it ended up here. 271 00:20:41,691 --> 00:20:46,260 IRENA: So I will be working in V18, 272 00:20:46,296 --> 00:20:48,563 so that's the plan for today. 273 00:20:49,332 --> 00:20:50,498 Okay, let's go. 274 00:20:55,238 --> 00:20:58,072 NARRATOR: But with every dive, they face danger. 275 00:20:59,909 --> 00:21:03,010 IRENA: It is forbidden to dive without the gloves on 276 00:21:03,046 --> 00:21:05,580 the site because it is full of toxic material. 277 00:21:08,051 --> 00:21:12,053 There was elementary mercury, we have lead carbonate. 278 00:21:17,894 --> 00:21:20,127 JON: Mercury and lead were used back in the 1500s 279 00:21:20,163 --> 00:21:22,697 for decorating furniture and its pigments for painting. 280 00:21:29,973 --> 00:21:33,541 If the divers touched the liquid mercury underwater with bare skin, 281 00:21:33,576 --> 00:21:34,909 it would cause burns. 282 00:21:40,550 --> 00:21:43,584 Above the surface, it can vaporize and if inhaled, 283 00:21:43,620 --> 00:21:46,287 can lead to brain damage, even death. 284 00:21:51,894 --> 00:21:54,629 Lead poisoning can damage the kidneys and nervous system. 285 00:21:59,702 --> 00:22:01,335 IRENA: When they come out of the water, 286 00:22:01,371 --> 00:22:05,339 they become dangerous, so we have to be very careful. 287 00:22:08,111 --> 00:22:09,410 JAMES: When you study a wreck, 288 00:22:09,445 --> 00:22:11,579 you need to carefully measure it, 289 00:22:11,614 --> 00:22:16,083 so we lay out metal grids that allow us to map everything in its place. 290 00:22:19,689 --> 00:22:22,823 It's a very meticulous science, 291 00:22:22,859 --> 00:22:24,125 it's CSI underwater. 292 00:22:26,996 --> 00:22:30,398 NARRATOR: After hundreds of dives over several years, 293 00:22:30,433 --> 00:22:33,801 Irena collects enough data to map the wreck's structure. 294 00:22:35,738 --> 00:22:38,339 Putting it all together begins to reveal what sort of 295 00:22:38,374 --> 00:22:39,774 ship it is. 296 00:22:49,552 --> 00:22:51,385 JAMES: If we were to drain the water away, 297 00:22:51,421 --> 00:22:53,854 what you would see if that this truly is, 298 00:22:53,890 --> 00:22:55,523 not only a large ship, 299 00:22:57,593 --> 00:22:59,860 but you'd get a sense of the scale of the hold. 300 00:23:02,632 --> 00:23:05,032 It could carry up to 800 tons of cargo. 301 00:23:06,803 --> 00:23:09,203 Now today that's about 5,000 barrels of oil, 302 00:23:11,040 --> 00:23:16,177 so we're talking about the 16th Century equivalent of a modern containership. 303 00:23:20,750 --> 00:23:24,285 NARRATOR: Although much of the cargo has been looted, some remains. 304 00:23:24,954 --> 00:23:28,989 What was this ship carrying and what can that reveal about its mission? 305 00:23:32,695 --> 00:23:35,696 JON: Finding a historic wreck with that much cargo on it, 306 00:23:35,732 --> 00:23:37,965 that many riches, is actually very, very rare. 307 00:23:49,061 --> 00:23:52,663 NARRATOR: Irena Radic Rossi and her dive team hope the cargo of 308 00:23:52,698 --> 00:23:55,366 a 16th Century Venetian ship 309 00:23:55,401 --> 00:24:00,404 will allow them to unlock its mysteries. 310 00:24:00,440 --> 00:24:03,574 JON: The hope is that we can find out where the ship was going, 311 00:24:03,609 --> 00:24:05,376 and crucially, put a name to it. 312 00:24:08,781 --> 00:24:10,948 NARRATOR: And a major clue lies in pieces over 313 00:24:10,983 --> 00:24:12,516 the sea floor. 314 00:24:13,586 --> 00:24:16,921 JAMES: The most extraordinary thing they found were window panes, 315 00:24:17,356 --> 00:24:20,858 hundreds of them, and they're still bringing them up today. 316 00:24:22,862 --> 00:24:24,562 IRENA: It was great. 317 00:24:24,797 --> 00:24:27,531 Tomas collected some glass down there, 318 00:24:27,567 --> 00:24:30,701 and we will see now what is inside. 319 00:24:33,506 --> 00:24:39,009 There is a lot of this glass lying everywhere in the surface layer of the site. 320 00:24:41,814 --> 00:24:45,182 When it was baked, it was completely transparent, 321 00:24:45,418 --> 00:24:50,988 and now, after four centuries of lying down on the seabed, 322 00:24:51,023 --> 00:24:53,491 the window pane's degraded. 323 00:24:54,494 --> 00:24:59,697 So this was beautiful glass that was used in nice buildings. 324 00:25:01,567 --> 00:25:04,969 In the 16th Century, it was quite a luxury product. 325 00:25:06,439 --> 00:25:10,741 (bells ringing). 326 00:25:14,146 --> 00:25:16,447 NARRATOR: To put a name on the wreck, 327 00:25:16,482 --> 00:25:19,650 Irena and her team contact the one man who might be able 328 00:25:19,685 --> 00:25:24,088 to figure it out, Mauro Bondioli. 329 00:25:26,626 --> 00:25:29,260 MAURO: And so she asked me to start archive research, 330 00:25:30,596 --> 00:25:33,130 not just to identify the wreck, 331 00:25:33,666 --> 00:25:35,733 but the reconstruct its whole history. 332 00:25:41,707 --> 00:25:44,441 NARRATOR: Mauro gets two solid leads, 333 00:25:44,644 --> 00:25:49,647 the age of the ship's guns and a list of the artifacts recovered so far. 334 00:25:51,617 --> 00:25:54,184 Then, he goes looking for more. 335 00:25:56,088 --> 00:26:00,724 JAMES: The Venetian state archives is an incredible trove of documents, 336 00:26:00,760 --> 00:26:05,896 state papers, correspondence, cargo lists for ships. 337 00:26:06,966 --> 00:26:12,036 It's so vast that it has 50 miles of shelves and over 300 rooms. 338 00:26:14,941 --> 00:26:18,742 Often times researchers go there and they will realize 339 00:26:18,778 --> 00:26:23,981 they are the first to touch a piece of paper since it was deposited in the archives 340 00:26:24,016 --> 00:26:25,382 hundreds of years ago. 341 00:26:29,055 --> 00:26:35,459 IRENA: Then, Mauro discovers a document about 5,000 window panes, 342 00:26:35,895 --> 00:26:40,764 so we immediately thought that it must have been our ship. 343 00:26:45,037 --> 00:26:46,470 NARRATOR: According to the records, 344 00:26:46,505 --> 00:26:51,041 in 1583 a ship leaves Venice loaded with chandeliers, 345 00:26:51,077 --> 00:26:54,478 silk and 5,000 window panes. 346 00:26:55,014 --> 00:26:57,381 Its name, the Gagliana Grossa. 347 00:27:02,288 --> 00:27:06,523 MAURO: I discovered that this was a ship that set out from Venice and was 348 00:27:06,559 --> 00:27:08,425 destined for Constantinople. 349 00:27:10,763 --> 00:27:12,296 JON: But that makes no sense. 350 00:27:12,331 --> 00:27:16,934 Constantinople is the center of Venice's mortal enemy, the Ottomans. 351 00:27:17,536 --> 00:27:20,237 Why are they sailing directly into their enemy's backyard? 352 00:27:21,974 --> 00:27:25,376 JON: But the story gets even stranger when it's found out who the cargo's meant for. 353 00:27:25,811 --> 00:27:27,978 It goes right to the top of the Ottoman Empire. 354 00:27:31,684 --> 00:27:33,851 MAURO: One of the most interesting things about this wreck 355 00:27:35,454 --> 00:27:37,688 is that this document research has confirmed 356 00:27:37,723 --> 00:27:40,758 that the cargo was going directly to the Sultan. 357 00:27:43,279 --> 00:27:45,829 JAMES: The archives revealed that Sultan, Murad the Third, 358 00:27:45,865 --> 00:27:48,399 is not your typical warrior king. 359 00:27:49,568 --> 00:27:51,769 He loves the finer things in life. 360 00:27:52,438 --> 00:27:54,505 He has a big, beautiful palace. 361 00:27:55,775 --> 00:27:59,410 He also loves women, lots of women. 362 00:28:01,447 --> 00:28:05,482 Murad keeps his 50 wives in the harem, 363 00:28:05,518 --> 00:28:09,620 a beautiful building decorated with many glass windows. 364 00:28:14,226 --> 00:28:16,760 We know that in 1583, 365 00:28:16,796 --> 00:28:20,564 the Sultan faces a terrible disaster. 366 00:28:21,734 --> 00:28:25,569 A fire burns down his most precious room in the palace. 367 00:28:27,773 --> 00:28:29,173 The harem. 368 00:28:30,242 --> 00:28:33,410 IRENA: The Sultan was very upset about it, 369 00:28:33,446 --> 00:28:36,213 so he wanted to reconstruct it as soon as possible. 370 00:28:38,184 --> 00:28:42,586 He gave the orders to purchase the material for the reconstruction 371 00:28:42,621 --> 00:28:46,323 and ordered 5,000 window panes, 372 00:28:46,826 --> 00:28:50,861 and the Senate of Venice decided to load them on Gagliana. 373 00:28:54,333 --> 00:28:57,301 JAMES: Venetian merchants would sell to anyone, 374 00:28:57,336 --> 00:29:03,373 even their enemies, and the government would likely turn a blind eye to that. 375 00:29:05,678 --> 00:29:10,180 The trade with the Ottomans was filling the coffers, 376 00:29:10,416 --> 00:29:14,818 so if this means trading with the enemy, why not? 377 00:29:16,288 --> 00:29:18,856 JON: But the Sultan never got his consignment of glass. 378 00:29:21,327 --> 00:29:23,460 NARRATOR: A fraction of the way into its journey, 379 00:29:23,496 --> 00:29:25,729 the Gagliana Grossa sinks, 380 00:29:25,765 --> 00:29:28,799 making it the richest renaissance wreck in the Mediterranean. 381 00:29:30,836 --> 00:29:33,537 JON: You have to wonder how such a state of the art merchant ship 382 00:29:33,572 --> 00:29:35,139 ended up at the bottom of the ocean. 383 00:29:46,635 --> 00:29:48,235 NARRATOR: To find out what could've caused the 384 00:29:48,270 --> 00:29:50,771 Gagliana Grossa cargo ship to sink, 385 00:29:51,173 --> 00:29:54,041 the team turns to clues within the archives. 386 00:29:56,112 --> 00:30:00,848 JAMES: The Venetian archives tell us that the Gagliana sails 387 00:30:00,883 --> 00:30:03,884 from Venice in late October, 1583. 388 00:30:04,787 --> 00:30:06,487 That's late in the season, 389 00:30:06,522 --> 00:30:09,490 and the ban on sailing in the winter is about to start. 390 00:30:11,160 --> 00:30:13,227 JAMES: There is a good reason for that ban. 391 00:30:16,765 --> 00:30:19,133 JON: The Adriatic's a dangerous sea at the best of times. 392 00:30:19,768 --> 00:30:23,403 It acts like a big funnel and it channels storms up and along its length, 393 00:30:23,439 --> 00:30:24,805 coming in from the mountains, 394 00:30:26,275 --> 00:30:27,407 and it makes it treacherous, 395 00:30:27,443 --> 00:30:29,209 particularly if you're pushing it into the stormier 396 00:30:29,245 --> 00:30:30,477 part of the season. 397 00:30:32,648 --> 00:30:35,282 JAMES: What happened? 398 00:30:35,317 --> 00:30:38,418 Perhaps it took a while to finish the glass 399 00:30:38,454 --> 00:30:40,954 and then to load that precious cargo into the ship. 400 00:30:41,924 --> 00:30:45,192 If that's the case, it would be a fatal delay. 401 00:30:48,030 --> 00:30:49,796 NARRATOR: The Gagliana's course would've taken it 402 00:30:49,832 --> 00:30:53,233 right through an area nicknamed Little Ocean, 403 00:30:54,270 --> 00:30:56,270 renowned for its storms. 404 00:30:58,707 --> 00:31:03,977 JAMES: What probably happened is that a squall storm strikes, 405 00:31:04,613 --> 00:31:09,416 and Gagliana Grossa, overloaded with all that heavy glass, 406 00:31:09,451 --> 00:31:11,051 begins to list, 407 00:31:11,954 --> 00:31:16,757 takes on water and then falls to the bottom of the sea, 408 00:31:19,161 --> 00:31:21,361 taking the Sultan's precious cargo with her. 409 00:31:31,273 --> 00:31:33,607 JON: The fate of the Gagliana tells a bigger story 410 00:31:33,642 --> 00:31:36,677 and it's really about the demise of Venice as a trading power. 411 00:31:40,216 --> 00:31:44,251 NARRATOR: The Gagliana sinks at a critical time of change in the Mediterranean. 412 00:31:47,489 --> 00:31:49,723 JON: By the 1580s, you've got the English, 413 00:31:49,758 --> 00:31:52,726 you've got the Spanish building much bigger ships 414 00:31:52,761 --> 00:31:56,463 which could survive brutal voyages across the Atlantic, 415 00:31:56,498 --> 00:32:01,535 and they begin to take on the trading role that Venice was once so famous for. 416 00:32:03,739 --> 00:32:05,405 JON: Venice is teetering on the brink, 417 00:32:05,441 --> 00:32:07,641 her enemies are expanding into her territory. 418 00:32:09,845 --> 00:32:13,180 (bells ringing). 419 00:32:13,215 --> 00:32:16,083 JAMES: But the Venetian civilization is brought to its knees, 420 00:32:17,019 --> 00:32:21,555 not by guns and swords but from an invisible silent enemy 421 00:32:21,590 --> 00:32:23,991 that Venice has no defense against. 422 00:32:27,997 --> 00:32:33,233 This new deadly force plunges Venetians into a war they have no chance of winning. 423 00:32:39,575 --> 00:32:40,774 GIOVANNI: For most people, 424 00:32:40,809 --> 00:32:44,578 Venice begins and ends with the city and its famous landmarks. 425 00:32:47,449 --> 00:32:52,452 But, to really know Venice, you have to look in the less glamorous places. 426 00:32:55,057 --> 00:32:57,658 NARRATOR: Venetian historian, Giovanni Caniato, 427 00:32:57,693 --> 00:33:00,727 has spent years piecing together the lives of Venetians 428 00:33:00,763 --> 00:33:03,397 during the last decades of the Republic. 429 00:33:09,038 --> 00:33:12,873 GIOVANNI: No one has paid much attention to the island we're headed to 430 00:33:12,908 --> 00:33:14,041 until recently. 431 00:33:16,011 --> 00:33:19,913 But I've discovered it hides a disturbing secret. 432 00:33:32,361 --> 00:33:37,564 GIOVANNI: Walking around this island, I discovered a huge building 433 00:33:37,599 --> 00:33:40,901 with hundreds and hundreds of inscriptions, 434 00:33:40,936 --> 00:33:44,971 drawing traced on the plaster inside the building. 435 00:33:47,443 --> 00:33:49,876 Incredible. Incredible. Fascinating. 436 00:33:50,212 --> 00:33:52,512 And the more I looked, the more I found. 437 00:33:54,550 --> 00:33:59,286 I wanted to know who wrote these inscriptions, 438 00:33:59,321 --> 00:34:03,123 why they did it and this curiosity made me crazy 439 00:34:03,158 --> 00:34:07,494 and I start looking for documents to understand why certain names 440 00:34:07,529 --> 00:34:09,629 were traced on the walls. 441 00:34:15,337 --> 00:34:21,141 I had the impression that most of these drawings were strictly related with trade, 442 00:34:21,176 --> 00:34:24,478 with goods that were disembarked in this place, 443 00:34:24,513 --> 00:34:30,083 and most of them were the initials of a merchant. 444 00:34:33,122 --> 00:34:35,222 NARRATOR: Back at the state archives, 445 00:34:35,257 --> 00:34:39,993 Giovanni discovers that the mysterious building dates back to 1562. 446 00:34:41,764 --> 00:34:44,598 JAMES: The archives tell us that this is a warehouse 447 00:34:44,633 --> 00:34:48,168 under which merchants store all the goods that are coming by sea. 448 00:34:49,438 --> 00:34:54,074 But if that's the case then you'd expect it to be built in the center of the city 449 00:34:54,109 --> 00:34:55,409 or at the port entrance, 450 00:34:56,245 --> 00:35:00,046 not on some remote island two miles from the city. 451 00:35:02,651 --> 00:35:05,051 NARRATOR: When a team of archaeologists starts digging 452 00:35:05,087 --> 00:35:07,854 for artifacts in the shadow of the building, 453 00:35:08,590 --> 00:35:10,290 the mystery only deepens. 454 00:35:13,028 --> 00:35:15,996 JON: They find skeletons, bones, human remains. 455 00:35:17,399 --> 00:35:19,800 So far they've dug up about 40 skeletons. 456 00:35:21,570 --> 00:35:24,871 It takes a long time to record a human skeleton fully 457 00:35:24,907 --> 00:35:27,974 and it can actually be quite an upsetting process, 458 00:35:28,010 --> 00:35:29,476 a disturbing process as well. 459 00:35:31,380 --> 00:35:36,483 It takes 14 excavators two days to work on just one skeleton and record it fully. 460 00:35:40,522 --> 00:35:44,090 One of the first things you do with human bone is find out what period it came from, 461 00:35:44,126 --> 00:35:47,794 and what's really interesting is they all seem to date from the same period as the building. 462 00:35:50,032 --> 00:35:53,133 That means these people died when the building was in use. 463 00:35:56,538 --> 00:35:59,473 What was surprising was they were finding that the skeletons weren't whole, 464 00:35:59,508 --> 00:36:02,843 they'd been cut in half, legs were removed, 465 00:36:04,713 --> 00:36:07,447 and this is quite a macabre discovery. 466 00:36:10,652 --> 00:36:14,521 NARRATOR: To figure out if the terrible mutilations were the cause of death, 467 00:36:14,890 --> 00:36:17,390 the team carries out a forensic examination. 468 00:36:19,595 --> 00:36:23,597 JAMES: Looking at the edges of the bones where these bodies have been cut in half, 469 00:36:23,765 --> 00:36:24,931 they find that they're brittle, 470 00:36:24,967 --> 00:36:27,200 they're fractured, they're jagged. 471 00:36:28,170 --> 00:36:32,572 Bone dries out in the soil, it loses collagen, it becomes brittle, 472 00:36:33,175 --> 00:36:34,641 and all of these bones have been 473 00:36:34,676 --> 00:36:38,178 fractured in a way that showed that this had happened long after death. 474 00:36:40,816 --> 00:36:44,651 NARRATOR: There's only one explanation for what they foun. 475 00:36:46,288 --> 00:36:51,324 The skeletons must have been dug up and then cut into pieces. 476 00:36:52,761 --> 00:36:54,861 JAMES: So the question is then... 477 00:36:54,897 --> 00:36:58,532 Why did them up after they've been buried? 478 00:37:12,130 --> 00:37:14,664 NARRATOR: Archaeologists believe the 42 skeletons they 479 00:37:14,700 --> 00:37:17,701 found are just the tip of the iceberg. 480 00:37:20,105 --> 00:37:22,572 JON: We don't know what lies under the rest of the island, 481 00:37:22,608 --> 00:37:24,808 but the amount of skeletons they found, 482 00:37:24,843 --> 00:37:27,877 they were probably looking at thousands of skeletons on the site, 483 00:37:30,148 --> 00:37:34,918 layer after layer, essentially a killing field. 484 00:37:40,726 --> 00:37:47,063 ¶ ¶ 485 00:37:48,867 --> 00:37:51,001 NARRATOR: Historian, Giovanni Caniato, 486 00:37:51,036 --> 00:37:54,237 believes clues as to what's behind this mass grave 487 00:37:54,273 --> 00:37:58,008 and its brutal burial methods lie in the history books. 488 00:38:01,647 --> 00:38:03,346 GIOVANNI: From the 14th Century on, 489 00:38:03,382 --> 00:38:06,349 you begin to see accounts of mass death, 490 00:38:06,985 --> 00:38:08,952 thousands are dying, hundreds a day, 491 00:38:08,987 --> 00:38:11,755 and bodies are piling up in the streets, 492 00:38:13,025 --> 00:38:17,127 and this fills the population with fear, suspicion. 493 00:38:17,162 --> 00:38:18,928 What's causing this? 494 00:38:20,065 --> 00:38:22,932 And this is death that spares no one, 495 00:38:22,968 --> 00:38:26,403 from the poorest to the richest and the most powerful. 496 00:38:28,840 --> 00:38:33,076 JON: The Venetians don't know what the cause of these terrible outbreaks actually are, 497 00:38:33,312 --> 00:38:34,611 But there is one clue. 498 00:38:34,630 --> 00:38:37,013 They begin to notice that the ships that are coming in, 499 00:38:37,049 --> 00:38:41,184 that often the sailors are getting ill a short time after they dock at the port. 500 00:38:44,289 --> 00:38:47,023 JAMES: What we now know is that this is the age of the Black Death. 501 00:38:47,459 --> 00:38:51,961 The Bubonic Plague, carried in fleas on rats, 502 00:38:52,798 --> 00:38:57,100 and as this plague spreads throughout Europe and kills so many, 503 00:38:57,569 --> 00:39:01,071 it will even hit a place like Venice because rats can be found in ships, 504 00:39:01,907 --> 00:39:07,844 and it's ironic that for all of the power and the wealth that comes to Venice 505 00:39:07,879 --> 00:39:13,283 in the hold of a ship, now comes death, unstoppable death. 506 00:39:21,927 --> 00:39:25,128 NARRATOR: Now, for Giovanni, it all comes together. 507 00:39:25,764 --> 00:39:30,600 He realizes the merchant's building is much more than a simple warehouse. 508 00:39:30,902 --> 00:39:35,305 GIOVANNI: Venetians understood that it was a good idea 509 00:39:35,340 --> 00:39:40,043 to have a place for people who were suspected to have the plague, 510 00:39:41,313 --> 00:39:44,714 and so they created Lazzaretto Nuovo. 511 00:39:48,153 --> 00:39:51,254 NARRATOR: Historical records and archaeological findings 512 00:39:51,289 --> 00:39:56,393 allow them to rebuild the isolation facility as it was in 1562, 513 00:39:56,962 --> 00:39:59,929 revealing the truth about what happened here. 514 00:40:04,503 --> 00:40:06,336 PETER: This was an island where all the ships 515 00:40:06,371 --> 00:40:10,206 coming into the lagoon would wait for 40 days, 516 00:40:10,242 --> 00:40:13,076 quaranta in Italian, or quarantine. 517 00:40:14,980 --> 00:40:19,682 GIOVANNI: This building marks the height of a revolutionary Venetian innovation. 518 00:40:20,452 --> 00:40:25,588 It was the world's largest and most sophisticated quarantine building 519 00:40:25,624 --> 00:40:27,290 of the 16th Century. 520 00:40:29,661 --> 00:40:31,227 JAMES: It's amazing when you think about it. 521 00:40:31,263 --> 00:40:33,563 This is 400 years before germ theory, 522 00:40:34,065 --> 00:40:38,234 but here they are figuring out that you need to isolate people 523 00:40:38,270 --> 00:40:40,637 and move them away so that they don't spread it. 524 00:40:41,339 --> 00:40:42,639 Sound familiar? 525 00:40:47,145 --> 00:40:49,546 NARRATOR: For Giovanni and the team of excavators, 526 00:40:49,581 --> 00:40:51,948 the mass graves begin to make sense. 527 00:40:53,685 --> 00:40:58,922 JAMES: So, what you see is with an estimate of over 500 a day dying, 528 00:40:58,957 --> 00:41:03,226 this quarantine island now becomes the overflow 529 00:41:03,261 --> 00:41:06,396 for the dying and for the dead. 530 00:41:08,567 --> 00:41:12,802 GIOVANNI: Can you imagine to live in this island with thousands of other people, 531 00:41:12,838 --> 00:41:14,471 half of them dying? 532 00:41:15,874 --> 00:41:18,842 You couldn't move, you couldn't go out from the building. 533 00:41:19,444 --> 00:41:21,911 Armed guards are checking that you don't move, 534 00:41:21,947 --> 00:41:24,714 and if you try to run away you are killed immediately. 535 00:41:26,051 --> 00:41:28,084 That was a terrible situation. 536 00:41:32,290 --> 00:41:34,524 NARRATOR: And the team realizes even the 537 00:41:34,559 --> 00:41:37,627 desecration of the bones serves a chilling purpose. 538 00:41:42,901 --> 00:41:45,235 JON: With hundreds of bodies a day arriving on the island, 539 00:41:45,270 --> 00:41:47,837 there just wasn't enough space to bury everyone, 540 00:41:50,075 --> 00:41:53,109 so they'd have to cut down into the existing graves there, 541 00:41:53,144 --> 00:41:54,344 cutting through bodies, 542 00:41:54,379 --> 00:41:57,113 cutting through corpses to create space for new bodies. 543 00:42:00,151 --> 00:42:02,919 I mean this is quite a picture of hell really 544 00:42:02,954 --> 00:42:04,387 for the people that were working there. 545 00:42:07,792 --> 00:42:13,429 JAMES: These inscriptions on the wall take on new meaning and poignancy. 546 00:42:14,432 --> 00:42:18,234 Whoever wrote these probably didn't realize this would be the 547 00:42:18,270 --> 00:42:21,304 last thing they would ever write and the 548 00:42:21,339 --> 00:42:24,274 last trace of them, other than their bones. 549 00:42:33,451 --> 00:42:35,552 NARRATOR: But even with the plague island, 550 00:42:35,587 --> 00:42:39,122 this unique city state is brought slowly to its knees. 551 00:42:40,825 --> 00:42:42,959 JAMES: Nearly a third of the population is gone, 552 00:42:42,994 --> 00:42:46,229 practically overnight, and that includes key people. 553 00:42:47,032 --> 00:42:51,234 Shipwrights, soldiers, sailors, merchants, 554 00:42:51,269 --> 00:42:53,903 all of the people that made Venice great. 555 00:42:55,807 --> 00:42:59,108 Venice never recovers her position. 556 00:43:02,681 --> 00:43:06,849 JON It goes to show just how fragile even great civilizations can be. 557 00:43:08,687 --> 00:43:11,387 Their warships allowed them to dominate the seas, 558 00:43:11,423 --> 00:43:13,790 giving them control of ports and trade routes. 559 00:43:15,827 --> 00:43:18,027 Their merchant vessels sailed from port to port a 560 00:43:18,063 --> 00:43:20,029 massing fast fortunes, 561 00:43:20,065 --> 00:43:22,565 making connections around the Mediterranean, 562 00:43:22,601 --> 00:43:24,801 all the way to Constantinople. 563 00:43:27,439 --> 00:43:31,307 JON: But it's actually those contacts that ended up bringing death to Venice. 564 00:43:31,343 --> 00:43:33,710 There was no defense against the plague, 565 00:43:33,745 --> 00:43:37,046 all their technology could do nothing about this deadly disease. 566 00:43:39,184 --> 00:43:41,751 Essentially, Venice became a victim of its own success. 567 00:43:43,622 --> 00:43:47,991 ¶ ¶ 568 00:43:48,026 --> 00:43:52,729 JAMES: But Venice adapted, and the Venetians rode out the Bubonic Plague. 569 00:43:56,201 --> 00:43:59,869 Today their city is one of the most beautiful and most visited in the world, 570 00:44:01,906 --> 00:44:05,041 and that speaks to the power of the human spirit, 571 00:44:06,411 --> 00:44:08,911 that speaks to resilience, 572 00:44:08,947 --> 00:44:14,384 and that speaks to our ability as humans to go through something tough 573 00:44:14,419 --> 00:44:16,586 and come out on the other side. 574 00:44:18,089 --> 00:44:20,623 ¶ ¶ 575 00:44:21,226 --> 00:44:22,358 Captioned by Cotter Media Group.