1 00:00:02,040 --> 00:00:04,080 (bells ringing). 2 00:00:04,160 --> 00:00:07,280 NARRATOR: A city state like no other, 3 00:00:07,360 --> 00:00:09,000 feared the world over. 4 00:00:11,360 --> 00:00:13,840 JAMES: A rich, powerful republic, 5 00:00:13,920 --> 00:00:16,560 making vast amounts of money, 6 00:00:16,640 --> 00:00:21,040 protected by a massive fleet of the world's fastest war ships. 7 00:00:22,440 --> 00:00:25,160 NARRATOR: Venice would be nothing without its ships, 8 00:00:25,240 --> 00:00:27,800 but their secrets have been lost for centuries. 9 00:00:30,560 --> 00:00:33,640 What can three discoveries reveal about how Venice 10 00:00:33,720 --> 00:00:36,320 becomes a renaissance superpower? 11 00:00:37,240 --> 00:00:39,240 JON: This could give us a clue into how the Venetians 12 00:00:39,320 --> 00:00:41,760 ruled for almost 500 years. 13 00:00:43,760 --> 00:00:46,560 NARRATOR: And why it finally falls into ruin. 14 00:00:47,800 --> 00:00:52,520 GIOVANNI: There have been extended excavations and they found thousands of bodies. 15 00:00:54,560 --> 00:00:57,600 JON: In a very real sense, the history of Venice lies underwater. 16 00:00:59,040 --> 00:01:00,360 We just have to find it. 17 00:01:12,000 --> 00:01:14,080 NARRATOR: A city of high culture, 18 00:01:14,160 --> 00:01:18,240 magnificent architecture, stunning natural beauty, 19 00:01:19,240 --> 00:01:22,560 made possible by a past steeped in conquest. 20 00:01:28,200 --> 00:01:30,440 JON (off-screen): At its height, 700 years ago, 21 00:01:30,520 --> 00:01:33,080 Venice controlled an area spanning 1000 miles, 22 00:01:33,160 --> 00:01:35,800 and its influence stretched across three continents. 23 00:01:37,240 --> 00:01:39,560 It was a maritime empire of unequalled power, 24 00:01:39,640 --> 00:01:41,360 and the wealthiest city in Western Europe. 25 00:01:45,160 --> 00:01:49,720 JAMES: The key to Venice is its watercraft, 26 00:01:51,280 --> 00:01:54,280 and while many people know of the famous gondolas, 27 00:01:54,360 --> 00:01:58,400 the true Venetian vessel is the galley. 28 00:01:58,840 --> 00:02:03,880 These ships dominate the Mediterranean for centuries, 29 00:02:03,960 --> 00:02:07,920 and are key to Venice becoming a naval power, 30 00:02:08,000 --> 00:02:10,880 an economic power and a political power. 31 00:02:14,000 --> 00:02:17,040 NARRATOR: And the seed of this power is the Arsenale, 32 00:02:17,120 --> 00:02:20,000 once the biggest industrial facility in the west. 33 00:02:25,960 --> 00:02:28,120 Hidden behind high walls, 34 00:02:28,200 --> 00:02:32,800 thousands worked to build the best warships the world has ever seen. 35 00:02:36,960 --> 00:02:40,920 PETER: But the master ship builders kept their designs to themselves, 36 00:02:41,360 --> 00:02:43,280 handing them down from father to son, 37 00:02:43,360 --> 00:02:44,920 by word of mouth only. 38 00:02:46,440 --> 00:02:49,720 So we have no blueprints or plans for any galleys, 39 00:02:50,200 --> 00:02:52,600 and we've never been able to find any evidence of one. 40 00:02:58,800 --> 00:03:03,400 STEFANDO: Any archaeologist dreams of discovering a Venetian medieval galley. 41 00:03:05,560 --> 00:03:09,320 I've been living and working in Venice for 25 years. 42 00:03:09,400 --> 00:03:11,480 It's a place that never ceases to amaze me. 43 00:03:14,360 --> 00:03:15,920 NARRATOR: For his entire career, 44 00:03:16,000 --> 00:03:19,000 maritime archaeologist, Stefano Medas, 45 00:03:19,080 --> 00:03:22,480 has been searching for evidence of Venice's naval power. 46 00:03:23,200 --> 00:03:27,440 He's focused his search in the waters of the lagoon that surrounds the city. 47 00:03:31,400 --> 00:03:33,920 JAMES: The difficulty in excavating Venice's past 48 00:03:34,000 --> 00:03:38,880 is that it sits in a lagoon 200 square miles in size, 49 00:03:38,960 --> 00:03:42,560 and that's three times the area of Washington DC. 50 00:03:44,440 --> 00:03:49,280 JON: Trying to find a ship in these waters is like looking for a needle in a haystack. 51 00:03:49,360 --> 00:03:50,280 Actually, it's worse than that, 52 00:03:50,360 --> 00:03:53,080 it's like looking for a needle in a haystack underwater with 53 00:03:53,160 --> 00:03:54,400 a bucket over your head. 54 00:03:59,160 --> 00:04:03,800 JAMES (off-screen): The city sits on 118 small islands connected by bridges and canals. 55 00:04:05,080 --> 00:04:07,240 From above, it looks beautiful, 56 00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:09,720 but drain the canals and then the lagoon, 57 00:04:09,800 --> 00:04:13,480 and you start to understand why nobody, after 700 years, 58 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:17,800 has been able to find any shipwrecks of any significance. 59 00:04:19,600 --> 00:04:23,520 Today, over 80% of the lagoon is thick mud, 60 00:04:23,600 --> 00:04:25,520 just about 11% is water. 61 00:04:28,400 --> 00:04:32,840 So even if you were lucky enough to find anything, 62 00:04:32,920 --> 00:04:35,160 it would most likely be trapped under the mud, 63 00:04:36,040 --> 00:04:40,080 and to dredge the lagoon would take 1000 years. 64 00:04:49,240 --> 00:04:50,760 NARRATOR: Despite the challenges, 65 00:04:50,840 --> 00:04:53,440 Stefano is convinced his quest for evidence of an 66 00:04:53,520 --> 00:04:56,240 ancient warship is worth continuing. 67 00:04:59,440 --> 00:05:01,720 STEFANDO: We know from historical sources, old maps, 68 00:05:01,800 --> 00:05:04,160 that something important was there. 69 00:05:07,080 --> 00:05:08,680 NARRATOR: In 1997, 70 00:05:08,760 --> 00:05:11,920 a team of divers makes a tantalizing discovery. 71 00:05:13,680 --> 00:05:15,120 A piece of wood. 72 00:05:22,000 --> 00:05:23,080 JON (off-screen): It might not sound much 73 00:05:23,160 --> 00:05:25,280 but for archaeologists it's a breakthrough. 74 00:05:26,760 --> 00:05:28,960 A piece of wood could mean a ship. 75 00:05:33,960 --> 00:05:36,120 STEFANDO: It was an extraordinary discovery 76 00:05:36,200 --> 00:05:38,400 that could give us a lot of information. 77 00:05:40,000 --> 00:05:42,720 When you're lucky enough to find a piece of wood, 78 00:05:42,800 --> 00:05:46,280 the first thing to do is to try and find out how old it is, 79 00:05:47,080 --> 00:05:50,680 so it's sent to the lab for radio carbon analysis. 80 00:05:55,080 --> 00:06:00,520 It was amazing because we found out that it was from the 14th Century. 81 00:06:04,040 --> 00:06:05,800 JAMES: Wood from the 14th Century, 82 00:06:05,880 --> 00:06:08,200 for Stefano and the team it's like finding the holy grail. 83 00:06:08,800 --> 00:06:14,880 This is from the time when Venice is at the peak of its naval and economic power. 84 00:06:14,960 --> 00:06:18,320 You couldn't have found a piece from a better period. 85 00:06:20,800 --> 00:06:23,120 JON (off-screen): So now Stefano knows there's something worth finding 86 00:06:23,200 --> 00:06:24,400 in the mud of the lagoon. 87 00:06:28,080 --> 00:06:29,400 NARRATOR: In 2001, 88 00:06:29,480 --> 00:06:31,600 Stefano and his team begin their search 89 00:06:31,680 --> 00:06:36,000 in the area where the 14th Century piece of wood was discovered. 90 00:06:37,520 --> 00:06:40,320 JAMES: But the problem is, that you're in very muddy water 91 00:06:40,400 --> 00:06:42,760 where you can see nothing the moment you stir the mud up. 92 00:06:47,160 --> 00:06:50,560 NARRATOR: When they do find something, it's something big. 93 00:06:54,880 --> 00:06:58,720 ♪ ♪ 94 00:06:58,800 --> 00:07:03,160 STEFANDO: We started seeing this gigantic hull in perfect condition. 95 00:07:04,400 --> 00:07:07,640 It was very emotional for the whole team of archaeologists. 96 00:07:09,880 --> 00:07:13,880 NARRATOR: To find out if this structure they found could be a long-lost galley, 97 00:07:13,960 --> 00:07:16,520 Stefano turns to the one man who can help him, 98 00:07:16,880 --> 00:07:21,080 Venetian historian and ship expert, Mauro Bondioli. 99 00:07:27,800 --> 00:07:29,920 MAURO: They called me because I was the only person 100 00:07:30,000 --> 00:07:32,560 in the world with the knowledge to study and identify 101 00:07:32,640 --> 00:07:34,240 this particular type of wreck. 102 00:07:38,800 --> 00:07:43,280 When Stefano called, I immediately said okay, 103 00:07:43,360 --> 00:07:46,880 I'll drop everything and tomorrow morning I will be at the lagoon. 104 00:07:50,280 --> 00:07:54,680 I had thought all night about how to identify a galley from other types of ships. 105 00:07:57,680 --> 00:08:00,360 I calculated the length and I said okay, 106 00:08:00,720 --> 00:08:02,280 in this particular point, 107 00:08:02,360 --> 00:08:06,000 we should be able to find a structure typically found in galleys, 108 00:08:06,400 --> 00:08:08,200 which is the mast step. 109 00:08:10,160 --> 00:08:15,840 JAMES: A mast step is a notch cut into the backbone of a ship, 110 00:08:15,920 --> 00:08:17,440 deep down in its hold. 111 00:08:18,000 --> 00:08:20,200 That's a key piece of evidence, 112 00:08:20,280 --> 00:08:24,440 but good luck trying to find that along the entire of a ship 113 00:08:24,520 --> 00:08:27,320 buried in the mud when you're doing it by feel. 114 00:08:30,920 --> 00:08:32,880 NARRATOR: Armed with this potential lead, 115 00:08:32,960 --> 00:08:35,400 the team returns to the submerged wreck. 116 00:08:36,960 --> 00:08:40,520 MAURO: It was a very long operation because they had to dig through all that mud. 117 00:08:42,920 --> 00:08:45,200 I waited at least three hours for an answer. 118 00:08:49,800 --> 00:08:53,440 Finally, an archaeologist came to the surface and said, 119 00:08:53,520 --> 00:08:56,000 "We've located the structure made this way and that way," 120 00:08:57,600 --> 00:08:59,960 and I told them, "You've found a galley." 121 00:09:03,120 --> 00:09:09,720 STEFANDO: It was obviously extraordinary and exciting because we were certain 122 00:09:09,800 --> 00:09:15,360 it was the first wreck of a galley ever found in the Mediterranean and beyond. 123 00:09:19,440 --> 00:09:20,880 JON: So it's a very, very important find, 124 00:09:20,960 --> 00:09:24,120 and what you want to do is record every single part of that wreck, 125 00:09:24,200 --> 00:09:27,000 inch by inch, do a forensic study of it. 126 00:09:27,080 --> 00:09:29,880 The problem is, this wreck is completely covered in mud, 127 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:32,880 you can't even see your hand in front of your face under water. 128 00:09:35,560 --> 00:09:38,800 NARRATOR: How will they excavate this medieval fighting galley 129 00:09:38,880 --> 00:09:40,440 from the Venice lagoon? 130 00:09:42,480 --> 00:09:45,400 JON (off-screen): They're really gonna have to come up with a pretty unique solution. 131 00:10:02,040 --> 00:10:06,520 NARRATOR: Setfano Medas and his team believe the 14th Century galley they found 132 00:10:06,600 --> 00:10:11,400 in the Venice lagoon is so important it needs to be fully excavated. 133 00:10:12,880 --> 00:10:15,480 JAMES: So they come up with this crazy idea. 134 00:10:16,720 --> 00:10:19,120 Why don't we just drain the water away. 135 00:10:20,280 --> 00:10:22,200 And the government agrees. 136 00:10:22,280 --> 00:10:25,000 Even though this is gonna cost a million dollars. 137 00:10:27,880 --> 00:10:30,840 NARRATOR: The strategy create a cofferdam, 138 00:10:30,920 --> 00:10:33,400 a watertight enclosure they can pump dry. 139 00:10:36,880 --> 00:10:41,160 To build it, engineers sink 36 foot long steel girders 140 00:10:41,240 --> 00:10:44,680 vertically into the muddy floor of the lagoon, 141 00:10:44,760 --> 00:10:46,840 300 of them. 142 00:10:49,880 --> 00:10:53,200 JAMES: They have to fit everything together, 143 00:10:53,280 --> 00:10:56,360 girder by girder, perfectly. 144 00:10:56,920 --> 00:11:00,840 The slightest gap, even a fraction of an inch, 145 00:11:00,920 --> 00:11:05,680 can lead this thing to fail and the water can't be drained. 146 00:11:10,160 --> 00:11:11,360 JAMES (off-screen): Now comes the real test. 147 00:11:12,560 --> 00:11:14,320 It's getting the water out of there. 148 00:11:17,480 --> 00:11:21,320 You have to take huge pumps, and they use five of them, 149 00:11:21,400 --> 00:11:27,640 to remove millions of gallons, and they work around the clock. 150 00:11:34,360 --> 00:11:35,600 STEFANDO: While lowering the water, 151 00:11:35,680 --> 00:11:41,440 we spend days anxiously watching because the water level was dropping so slowly. 152 00:11:42,800 --> 00:11:44,680 JAMES: It takes two weeks to build the wall, 153 00:11:44,760 --> 00:11:48,160 and it takes a full week to get that cofferdam dry. 154 00:11:51,800 --> 00:11:55,720 NARRATOR: What begins to emerge is the outline of a sleek, narrow hull. 155 00:11:59,440 --> 00:12:02,840 But to examine it in detail, they have to move fast. 156 00:12:04,200 --> 00:12:06,960 JON: There's a problem with draining the water away 157 00:12:07,040 --> 00:12:10,240 because it's the water and mud that protected the site in the first place, 158 00:12:10,320 --> 00:12:12,080 and the moment you remove it, 159 00:12:12,160 --> 00:12:14,560 it instantly starts to decay, and actually that can be quite 160 00:12:14,640 --> 00:12:17,960 a quick process, particularly when you expose timbers to the 161 00:12:18,040 --> 00:12:19,320 air for the first time. 162 00:12:21,400 --> 00:12:23,040 JON (off-screen): So the important thing was to keep it wet, 163 00:12:23,120 --> 00:12:25,480 but also to cover it with a protected canvas, 164 00:12:25,560 --> 00:12:27,920 and they did that each time they were excavating the timbers. 165 00:12:32,200 --> 00:12:35,280 PETER (off-screen): The excavators worked painstakingly for three months, 166 00:12:35,360 --> 00:12:36,280 little by little 167 00:12:36,360 --> 00:12:39,040 exposing the vessel's unique hydrodynamic shape. 168 00:12:41,520 --> 00:12:44,080 Finally, the 700 year old galley, 169 00:12:44,160 --> 00:12:46,360 the pride of the Venetian fighting fleet, 170 00:12:46,440 --> 00:12:49,480 and the only one in existence today, 171 00:12:49,560 --> 00:12:51,840 is visible in all its glory. 172 00:12:58,160 --> 00:13:01,280 STEFANDO: It was amazing to see the beauty of the hull, 173 00:13:02,080 --> 00:13:04,320 the internal frames and the benches, 174 00:13:04,800 --> 00:13:07,320 seeing it from the stern to the bow, 175 00:13:07,400 --> 00:13:09,120 with its sharp lines. 176 00:13:09,600 --> 00:13:12,440 It was really emotional because it was like going back 177 00:13:12,520 --> 00:13:15,720 for one moment into a 14th Century boat yard. 178 00:13:19,880 --> 00:13:21,680 NARRATOR: The team takes measurements. 179 00:13:23,000 --> 00:13:27,440 The hull is 120 feet long and just 15 feet wide. 180 00:13:30,720 --> 00:13:31,880 For the first time, 181 00:13:31,960 --> 00:13:36,120 they could confirm the number and position of oarsmen powering the vessel. 182 00:13:39,200 --> 00:13:41,920 JAMES: Now, using all the new data from the excavation, 183 00:13:42,000 --> 00:13:45,160 we can bring this lost Venetian galley to life. 184 00:13:49,720 --> 00:13:52,840 JAMES (off-screen): When you see this extraordinary design slicing through the water, 185 00:13:52,920 --> 00:13:57,240 you really get a sense of how these warships made Venice a naval superpower. 186 00:14:01,040 --> 00:14:03,800 The engine of this machine? Muscle power. 187 00:14:04,160 --> 00:14:07,080 140 oarsmen rowing together. 188 00:14:09,120 --> 00:14:11,640 More rowers equals more power. 189 00:14:14,720 --> 00:14:17,840 Uniquely, they set three abreasted places, 190 00:14:17,920 --> 00:14:20,320 propelling the hydrodynamic hull through the water 191 00:14:20,400 --> 00:14:22,560 at an astonishing six miles an hour, 192 00:14:24,120 --> 00:14:27,600 making this the fastest ship on the seas at the time. 193 00:14:30,840 --> 00:14:32,720 And because of this speed and power, 194 00:14:32,800 --> 00:14:35,080 a galley could outmaneuver its slower opponents. 195 00:14:36,280 --> 00:14:37,840 That's naval superiority. 196 00:14:43,400 --> 00:14:45,320 MAURO: When a fleet of galleys appeared 197 00:14:45,400 --> 00:14:49,280 with so many oars rowing with an incredible, harmonious rhythm, 198 00:14:50,560 --> 00:14:52,040 like the wings of a bird, 199 00:14:54,440 --> 00:14:56,160 it must've looked fantastic, 200 00:14:57,600 --> 00:15:01,240 really incredible for people who had never seen things like this before. 201 00:15:05,640 --> 00:15:09,920 NARRATOR: The crew can even harness the power of a 65 foot long sail 202 00:15:10,000 --> 00:15:13,800 to carry them effortlessly forward when winds are favorable. 203 00:15:17,160 --> 00:15:18,960 PETER (off-screen): Before this galley was excavated, 204 00:15:19,040 --> 00:15:21,200 we had no idea how they were made, 205 00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:23,280 we had to guess at the design of these vessels. 206 00:15:25,440 --> 00:15:29,080 Now we know, from the design of the hull to the power of the oarsmen, 207 00:15:29,160 --> 00:15:32,080 these ships were simply years ahead of their time. 208 00:15:33,040 --> 00:15:36,640 JON: They were very maneuverable, sleek, fast, war machines. 209 00:15:42,560 --> 00:15:44,400 JAMES: When the archaeologists are done, 210 00:15:44,480 --> 00:15:46,280 they face two choices. 211 00:15:46,600 --> 00:15:49,840 To raise, recover and chemically treat it to preserve it 212 00:15:49,920 --> 00:15:51,800 at a cost of millions, 213 00:15:51,880 --> 00:15:54,640 or put it back in its time capsule. 214 00:15:56,920 --> 00:16:02,840 They let the water reclaim the cofferdam and bury the ship once again to preserve it. 215 00:16:05,600 --> 00:16:11,360 (bells tolling). 216 00:16:13,920 --> 00:16:15,280 JAMES (off-screen): 700 years ago, 217 00:16:15,360 --> 00:16:17,840 ports across the Venetian Empire would've been filled 218 00:16:17,920 --> 00:16:21,360 with hundreds of galleys like the one lying in Venice lagoon today. 219 00:16:24,840 --> 00:16:27,440 Guarding the coast, protecting trade routes, 220 00:16:27,520 --> 00:16:31,880 because trade is the beating heart of the Venetian Republic. 221 00:16:36,360 --> 00:16:39,680 MAURO: If you had visited Venice 700 years ago, 222 00:16:39,760 --> 00:16:42,480 you would've found one of the richest markets in the world. 223 00:16:44,240 --> 00:16:46,200 Any type of goods could be found in Venice. 224 00:16:49,120 --> 00:16:50,640 PETER (off-screen): And making this trade possible 225 00:16:50,720 --> 00:16:54,120 are vast fleets of Venetian merchant ships, 226 00:16:54,200 --> 00:16:57,200 sailing to the far reaches of the Mediterranean into Syria. 227 00:16:59,600 --> 00:17:03,600 JAMES (off-screen): Historical documents hint that these ships were loaded with riches, 228 00:17:03,680 --> 00:17:06,320 filled to the brim with millions of dollars worth of goods. 229 00:17:08,560 --> 00:17:12,640 The problem is, there's not many physical examples left in the archaeological record. 230 00:17:15,680 --> 00:17:17,400 NARRATOR: So what could a looted wreck, 231 00:17:17,480 --> 00:17:19,680 discovered off the coast of Croatia, 232 00:17:19,760 --> 00:17:22,560 reveal about the wealth of ancient Venice? 233 00:17:24,560 --> 00:17:26,880 IRENA: There was something important but nobody knew 234 00:17:26,960 --> 00:17:29,920 what was actually hiding on the seabed. 235 00:17:43,760 --> 00:17:46,680 IRENA: The second I saw this wreck, I was hooked. 236 00:17:50,760 --> 00:17:53,280 Nothing prepared me for its strange attraction. 237 00:17:57,120 --> 00:18:00,080 NARRATOR: For nine years, Irena Radic Rossi, 238 00:18:00,160 --> 00:18:03,040 has been diving here, off the coast of Croatia. 239 00:18:04,160 --> 00:18:06,680 The reason lies 80 feet below, 240 00:18:06,760 --> 00:18:09,280 a shipwreck first discovered and picked over 241 00:18:09,360 --> 00:18:10,640 decades ago. 242 00:18:14,480 --> 00:18:19,280 IRENA: We know for sure that in the early 60s a fisherman found the shipwreck site. 243 00:18:21,280 --> 00:18:24,600 He kept the information for himself for some time, 244 00:18:25,000 --> 00:18:30,520 and then somehow better divers came across this find 245 00:18:30,600 --> 00:18:33,040 and started to loot it. 246 00:18:36,800 --> 00:18:39,880 JAMES (off-screen): Back then, Croatia is part of communist Yugoslavia, 247 00:18:39,960 --> 00:18:42,760 and so when they hear about this find and the looting, 248 00:18:42,840 --> 00:18:45,200 the government send out a team to take a look. 249 00:18:51,880 --> 00:18:53,960 NARRATOR: Although the wreck has been looted, 250 00:18:54,040 --> 00:18:57,360 the government team still finds some important artifacts. 251 00:19:00,880 --> 00:19:05,360 JAMES: Among the most exciting things they found are objects that have a date on them. 252 00:19:08,280 --> 00:19:12,520 JON: Two cannon were brought up marked with the initials Z and A, 253 00:19:14,560 --> 00:19:17,560 and these initials stand for Zuanne Alberghetti, 254 00:19:17,640 --> 00:19:23,280 and Zuanne Alberghetti was actually a very famous bronze gun maker based in Venice, 255 00:19:23,360 --> 00:19:24,880 and that makes us think instantly there's a 256 00:19:24,960 --> 00:19:27,040 connection between this ship and Venice. 257 00:19:29,880 --> 00:19:33,200 JON (off-screen):But even more incredibly there's a date inscribed on the 258 00:19:33,280 --> 00:19:37,440 cannons in Roman numerals, and that date is 1582. 259 00:19:41,760 --> 00:19:47,040 And that's a time when Venice has established a place as the number one trading city. 260 00:19:47,120 --> 00:19:50,640 The place where anything and everything is bought and sold, 261 00:19:50,720 --> 00:19:53,280 all at a great profit for the merchants and government. 262 00:19:59,000 --> 00:20:03,520 And so if that ship is from around this crucial period of the 1580s, 263 00:20:03,600 --> 00:20:06,960 the question is, what else can the ship tell us? 264 00:20:10,640 --> 00:20:15,320 IRENA: The guns were an important clue for discovering the story of the shipwreck, 265 00:20:15,400 --> 00:20:18,320 but of course they didn't tell everything. 266 00:20:22,080 --> 00:20:23,960 NARRATOR: Starting in 2012, 267 00:20:24,040 --> 00:20:27,040 Irena and her team begin charting the size and scale 268 00:20:27,120 --> 00:20:28,520 of the plundered wreck 269 00:20:29,040 --> 00:20:31,480 to see if they can figure out what the ship was and 270 00:20:31,560 --> 00:20:33,200 how it ended up here. 271 00:20:34,160 --> 00:20:38,680 IRENA: So I will be working in V18, 272 00:20:38,760 --> 00:20:41,040 so that's the plan for today. 273 00:20:41,800 --> 00:20:42,960 Okay, let's go. 274 00:20:47,720 --> 00:20:50,560 NARRATOR: But with every dive, they face danger. 275 00:20:52,400 --> 00:20:55,440 IRENA: It is forbidden to dive without the gloves on 276 00:20:55,520 --> 00:20:58,040 the site because it is full of toxic material. 277 00:21:00,520 --> 00:21:04,520 There was elementary mercury, we have lead carbonate. 278 00:21:10,360 --> 00:21:12,560 JON (off-screen): Mercury and lead were used back in the 1500s 279 00:21:12,640 --> 00:21:15,160 for decorating furniture and its pigments for painting. 280 00:21:22,440 --> 00:21:25,960 If the divers touched the liquid mercury underwater with bare skin, 281 00:21:26,040 --> 00:21:27,400 it would cause burns. 282 00:21:33,040 --> 00:21:36,000 Above the surface, it can vaporize and if inhaled, 283 00:21:36,080 --> 00:21:38,760 can lead to brain damage, even death. 284 00:21:44,360 --> 00:21:47,120 Lead poisoning can damage the kidneys and nervous system. 285 00:21:52,160 --> 00:21:53,760 IRENA: When they come out of the water, 286 00:21:53,840 --> 00:21:57,800 they become dangerous, so we have to be very careful. 287 00:22:00,600 --> 00:22:01,840 JAMES (off-screen): When you study a wreck, 288 00:22:01,920 --> 00:22:04,000 you need to carefully measure it, 289 00:22:04,080 --> 00:22:08,560 so we lay out metal grids that allow us to map everything in its place. 290 00:22:12,160 --> 00:22:15,240 It's a very meticulous science, 291 00:22:15,320 --> 00:22:16,600 it's CSI underwater. 292 00:22:19,480 --> 00:22:22,840 NARRATOR: After hundreds of dives over several years, 293 00:22:22,920 --> 00:22:26,280 Irena collects enough data to map the wreck's structure. 294 00:22:28,200 --> 00:22:30,760 Putting it all together begins to reveal what sort of 295 00:22:30,840 --> 00:22:32,240 ship it is. 296 00:22:42,040 --> 00:22:43,800 JAMES (off-screen): If we were to drain the water away, 297 00:22:43,880 --> 00:22:46,280 what you would see if that this truly is, 298 00:22:46,360 --> 00:22:48,000 not only a large ship, 299 00:22:50,080 --> 00:22:52,320 but you'd get a sense of the scale of the hold. 300 00:22:55,120 --> 00:22:57,520 It could carry up to 800 tons of cargo. 301 00:22:59,280 --> 00:23:01,680 Now today that's about 5000 barrels of oil, 302 00:23:03,520 --> 00:23:08,640 so we're talking about the 16th Century equivalent of a modern containership. 303 00:23:13,240 --> 00:23:16,760 NARRATOR: Although much of the cargo has been looted, some remains. 304 00:23:17,440 --> 00:23:21,480 What was this ship carrying and what can that reveal about its mission? 305 00:23:25,160 --> 00:23:28,120 JON: Finding a historic wreck with that much cargo on it, 306 00:23:28,200 --> 00:23:30,440 that many riches, is actually very, very rare. 307 00:23:39,640 --> 00:23:46,040 NARRATOR: Irena Radic Rossi and her dive team hope the cargo of a 16th Century Venetian ship 308 00:23:46,120 --> 00:23:48,680 will allow them to unlock its mysteries. 309 00:23:50,840 --> 00:23:53,920 JON (off-screen): The hope is that we can find out where the ship was going, 310 00:23:54,000 --> 00:23:55,760 and crucially, put a name to it. 311 00:23:59,160 --> 00:24:01,280 NARRATOR: And a major clue lies in pieces over 312 00:24:01,360 --> 00:24:02,920 the sea floor. 313 00:24:03,960 --> 00:24:07,320 JAMES: The most extraordinary thing they found were window panes, 314 00:24:07,760 --> 00:24:11,240 hundreds of them, and they're still bringing them up today. 315 00:24:13,240 --> 00:24:15,120 IRENA: It was great. 316 00:24:15,200 --> 00:24:17,880 Tomas collected some glass down there, 317 00:24:17,960 --> 00:24:21,080 and we will see now what is inside. 318 00:24:23,880 --> 00:24:29,400 There is a lot of this glass lying everywhere in the surface layer of the site. 319 00:24:32,200 --> 00:24:35,720 When it was baked, it was completely transparent, 320 00:24:35,800 --> 00:24:41,320 and now, after four centuries of lying down on the seabed, 321 00:24:41,400 --> 00:24:43,880 the window pane's degraded. 322 00:24:44,880 --> 00:24:50,080 So this was beautiful glass that was used in nice buildings. 323 00:24:51,960 --> 00:24:55,360 IRENA (off-screen): In the 16th Century, it was quite a luxury product. 324 00:24:56,840 --> 00:25:01,120 (bells ringing). 325 00:25:04,520 --> 00:25:06,800 NARRATOR: To put a name on the wreck, 326 00:25:06,880 --> 00:25:10,000 Irena and her team contact the one man who might be able 327 00:25:10,080 --> 00:25:14,480 to figure it out, Mauro Bondioli. 328 00:25:17,000 --> 00:25:19,640 MAURO: And so she asked me to start archive research, 329 00:25:21,000 --> 00:25:23,520 not just to identify the wreck, 330 00:25:24,040 --> 00:25:26,120 but the reconstruct its whole history. 331 00:25:32,080 --> 00:25:34,960 NARRATOR: Mauro gets two solid leads, 332 00:25:35,040 --> 00:25:40,040 the age of the ship's guns and a list of the artifacts recovered so far. 333 00:25:42,000 --> 00:25:44,560 Then, he goes looking for more. 334 00:25:46,480 --> 00:25:51,080 JAMES: The Venetian state archives is an incredible trove of documents, 335 00:25:51,160 --> 00:25:56,280 state papers, correspondence, cargo lists for ships. 336 00:25:57,360 --> 00:26:02,440 It's so vast that it has 50 miles of shelves and over 300 rooms. 337 00:26:05,320 --> 00:26:09,080 Often times researchers go there and they will realize 338 00:26:09,160 --> 00:26:14,320 they are the first to touch a piece of paper since it was deposited in the archives 339 00:26:14,400 --> 00:26:15,760 hundreds of years ago. 340 00:26:19,760 --> 00:26:26,200 IRENA: Then, Mauro discovers a document about 5000 window panes, 341 00:26:26,280 --> 00:26:31,160 so we immediately thought that it must have been our ship. 342 00:26:35,440 --> 00:26:36,800 NARRATOR: According to the records, 343 00:26:36,880 --> 00:26:41,400 in 1583 a ship leaves Venice loaded with chandeliers, 344 00:26:41,480 --> 00:26:44,880 silk and 5000 window panes. 345 00:26:45,400 --> 00:26:47,760 Its name, the Gagliana Grossa. 346 00:26:52,680 --> 00:26:56,880 MAURO: I discovered that this was a ship that set out from Venice and was 347 00:26:56,960 --> 00:26:58,800 destined for Constantinople. 348 00:27:01,160 --> 00:27:02,640 JON (off-screen): But that makes no sense. 349 00:27:02,720 --> 00:27:07,320 Constantinople is the centre of Venice's mortal enemy, the Ottomans. 350 00:27:07,920 --> 00:27:10,640 Why are they sailing directly into their enemy's backyard? 351 00:27:12,360 --> 00:27:15,760 JON: But the story gets even stranger when it's found out who the cargo's meant for. 352 00:27:16,200 --> 00:27:18,360 It goes right to the top of the Ottoman Empire. 353 00:27:22,080 --> 00:27:24,240 MAURO: One of the most interesting things about this wreck 354 00:27:25,840 --> 00:27:28,040 is that this document research has confirmed 355 00:27:28,120 --> 00:27:31,160 that the cargo was going directly to the Sultan. 356 00:27:33,680 --> 00:27:36,160 JAMES: The archives revealed that Sultan, Murad the Third, 357 00:27:36,240 --> 00:27:38,800 is not your typical warrior king. 358 00:27:39,960 --> 00:27:42,160 JAMES (off-screen): He loves the finer things in life. 359 00:27:42,840 --> 00:27:44,880 He has a big, beautiful palace. 360 00:27:46,160 --> 00:27:49,800 He also loves women, lots of women. 361 00:27:51,840 --> 00:27:55,840 Murad keeps his 50 wives in the harem, 362 00:27:55,920 --> 00:28:00,000 a beautiful building decorated with many glass windows. 363 00:28:04,600 --> 00:28:07,120 We know that in 1583, 364 00:28:07,200 --> 00:28:10,960 the Sultan faces a terrible disaster. 365 00:28:12,120 --> 00:28:15,960 A fire burns down his most precious room in the palace. 366 00:28:18,160 --> 00:28:19,560 The harem. 367 00:28:20,640 --> 00:28:23,760 IRENA: The Sultan was very upset about it, 368 00:28:23,840 --> 00:28:26,600 so he wanted to reconstruct it as soon as possible. 369 00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:32,920 He gave the orders to purchase the material for the reconstruction 370 00:28:33,000 --> 00:28:36,720 and ordered 5000 window panes, 371 00:28:37,200 --> 00:28:41,240 and the Senate of Venice decided to load them on Gagliana. 372 00:28:44,720 --> 00:28:47,640 JAMES: Venetian merchants would sell to anyone, 373 00:28:47,720 --> 00:28:53,760 even their enemies, and the government would likely turn a blind eye to that. 374 00:28:56,080 --> 00:29:00,720 The trade with the Ottomans was filling the coffers, 375 00:29:00,800 --> 00:29:05,200 so if this means trading with the enemy, why not? 376 00:29:06,680 --> 00:29:09,240 JON (off-screen): But the Sultan never got his consignment of glass. 377 00:29:11,720 --> 00:29:13,800 NARRATOR: A fraction of the way into its journey, 378 00:29:13,880 --> 00:29:16,080 the Gagliana Grossa sinks, 379 00:29:16,160 --> 00:29:19,200 making it the richest renaissance wreck in the Mediterranean. 380 00:29:21,240 --> 00:29:23,880 JON: You have to wonder how such a state of the art merchant ship 381 00:29:23,960 --> 00:29:25,520 ended up at the bottom of the ocean. 382 00:29:34,880 --> 00:29:36,440 NARRATOR: To find out what could've caused the 383 00:29:36,520 --> 00:29:39,000 Gagliana Grossa cargo ship to sink, 384 00:29:39,400 --> 00:29:42,280 the team turns to clues within the archives. 385 00:29:44,360 --> 00:29:49,040 JAMES: The Venetian archives tell us that the Gagliana sails 386 00:29:49,120 --> 00:29:52,120 from Venice in late October, 1583. 387 00:29:53,040 --> 00:29:54,680 That's late in the season, 388 00:29:54,760 --> 00:29:57,720 and the ban on sailing in the winter is about to start. 389 00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:01,480 JAMES (off-screen): There is a good reason for that ban. 390 00:30:05,000 --> 00:30:07,360 JON: The Adriatic's a dangerous sea at the best of times. 391 00:30:08,000 --> 00:30:11,600 It acts like a big funnel and it channels storms up and along its length, 392 00:30:11,680 --> 00:30:13,040 coming in from the mountains, 393 00:30:14,520 --> 00:30:15,600 and it makes it treacherous, 394 00:30:15,680 --> 00:30:17,400 particularly if you're pushing it into the stormier 395 00:30:17,480 --> 00:30:18,720 part of the season. 396 00:30:21,640 --> 00:30:22,600 JAMES: What happened? 397 00:30:24,120 --> 00:30:26,600 JAMES (off-screen): Perhaps it took a while to finish the glass 398 00:30:26,680 --> 00:30:29,200 and then to load that precious cargo into the ship. 399 00:30:30,160 --> 00:30:33,440 If that's the case, it would be a fatal delay. 400 00:30:36,280 --> 00:30:38,000 NARRATOR: The Gagliana's course would've taken it 401 00:30:38,080 --> 00:30:41,480 right through an area nicknamed Little Ocean, 402 00:30:42,520 --> 00:30:44,520 renowned for its storms. 403 00:30:46,960 --> 00:30:52,200 JAMES (off-screen): What probably happened is that a squall storm strikes, 404 00:30:52,840 --> 00:30:57,600 and Gagliana Grossa, overloaded with all that heavy glass, 405 00:30:57,680 --> 00:30:59,280 begins to list, 406 00:31:00,200 --> 00:31:05,000 takes on water and then falls to the bottom of the sea, 407 00:31:07,400 --> 00:31:09,600 taking the Sultan's precious cargo with her. 408 00:31:19,520 --> 00:31:21,800 JON: The fate of the Gagliana tells a bigger story 409 00:31:21,880 --> 00:31:24,920 and it's really about the demise of Venice as a trading power. 410 00:31:28,440 --> 00:31:32,480 NARRATOR: The Gagliana sinks at a critical time of change in the Mediterranean. 411 00:31:35,720 --> 00:31:37,920 JON: By the 1580s, you've got the English, 412 00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:40,920 you've got the Spanish building much bigger ships 413 00:31:41,000 --> 00:31:44,640 which could survive brutal voyages across the Atlantic, 414 00:31:44,720 --> 00:31:49,760 and they begin to take on the trading role that Venice was once so famous for. 415 00:31:51,960 --> 00:31:53,600 JON (off-screen): Venice is teetering on the brink, 416 00:31:53,680 --> 00:31:55,880 her enemies are expanding into her territory. 417 00:31:58,080 --> 00:32:01,360 (bells ringing). 418 00:32:01,440 --> 00:32:04,320 JAMES (off-screen): But the Venetian civilization is brought to its knees, 419 00:32:05,240 --> 00:32:09,760 not by guns and swords but from an invisible silent enemy 420 00:32:09,840 --> 00:32:12,240 that Venice has no defense against. 421 00:32:16,240 --> 00:32:21,480 This new deadly force plunges Venetians into a war they have no chance of winning. 422 00:32:27,800 --> 00:32:28,840 GIOVANNI: For most people, 423 00:32:28,920 --> 00:32:32,800 Venice begins and ends with the city and its famous landmarks. 424 00:32:35,680 --> 00:32:40,680 But, to really know Venice, you have to look in the less glamorous places. 425 00:32:43,280 --> 00:32:45,840 NARRATOR: Venetian historian, Giovanni Caniato, 426 00:32:45,920 --> 00:32:48,920 has spent years piecing together the lives of Venetians 427 00:32:49,000 --> 00:32:51,640 during the last decades of the Republic. 428 00:32:57,280 --> 00:33:01,080 GIOVANNI: No one has paid much attention to the island we're headed to 429 00:33:01,160 --> 00:33:02,280 until recently. 430 00:33:04,240 --> 00:33:08,160 But I've discovered it hides a disturbing secret. 431 00:33:20,600 --> 00:33:25,760 GIOVANNI (off-screen): Walking around this island, I discovered a huge building 432 00:33:25,840 --> 00:33:29,080 with hundreds and hundreds of inscriptions, 433 00:33:29,160 --> 00:33:33,200 drawing traced on the plaster inside the building. 434 00:33:35,680 --> 00:33:38,120 Incredible. Incredible. Fascinating. 435 00:33:38,440 --> 00:33:40,760 And the more I looked, the more I found. 436 00:33:42,800 --> 00:33:47,480 I wanted to know who wrote these inscriptions, 437 00:33:47,560 --> 00:33:51,320 why they did and this curiosity made me crazy 438 00:33:51,400 --> 00:33:55,680 and I start looking for documents to understand why certain names 439 00:33:55,760 --> 00:33:57,880 were traced on the walls. 440 00:34:03,560 --> 00:34:09,320 I had the impression that most of these drawings were strictly related with trade, 441 00:34:09,400 --> 00:34:12,680 with goods that were disembarked in this place, 442 00:34:12,760 --> 00:34:18,320 and most of them were the initials of a merchant. 443 00:34:21,360 --> 00:34:23,400 NARRATOR: Back at the state archives, 444 00:34:23,480 --> 00:34:28,240 Giovanni discovers that the mysterious building dates back to 1562. 445 00:34:30,000 --> 00:34:32,800 JAMES: The archives tell us that this is a warehouse 446 00:34:32,880 --> 00:34:36,400 under which merchants store all the goods that are coming by sea. 447 00:34:37,680 --> 00:34:42,280 But if that's the case then you'd expect it to be built in the center of the city 448 00:34:42,360 --> 00:34:43,640 or at the port entrance, 449 00:34:44,480 --> 00:34:48,280 not on some remote island two miles from the city. 450 00:34:50,880 --> 00:34:53,240 NARRATOR: When a team of archaeologists starts digging 451 00:34:53,320 --> 00:34:56,080 for artifacts in the shadow of the building, 452 00:34:56,840 --> 00:34:58,520 the mystery only deepens. 453 00:35:01,280 --> 00:35:04,240 JON: They find skeletons, bones, human remains. 454 00:35:05,640 --> 00:35:08,040 So far they've dug up about 40 skeletons. 455 00:35:09,800 --> 00:35:13,080 It takes a long time to record a human skeleton fully 456 00:35:13,160 --> 00:35:16,160 and it can actually be quite an upsetting process, 457 00:35:16,240 --> 00:35:17,720 a disturbing process as well. 458 00:35:19,600 --> 00:35:24,720 It takes 14 excavators two days to work on just one skeleton and record it fully. 459 00:35:28,760 --> 00:35:32,280 One of the first things you do with human bone is find out what period it came from, 460 00:35:32,360 --> 00:35:36,040 and what's really interesting is they all seem to date from the same period as the building. 461 00:35:38,280 --> 00:35:41,360 That means these people died when the building was in use. 462 00:35:44,760 --> 00:35:47,680 What was surprising was they were finding that the skeletons weren't whole, 463 00:35:47,760 --> 00:35:51,080 they'd been cut in half, legs were removed, 464 00:35:52,960 --> 00:35:55,680 and this is quite a macabre discovery. 465 00:35:58,880 --> 00:36:02,760 NARRATOR: To figure out if the terrible mutilations were the cause of death, 466 00:36:03,120 --> 00:36:05,640 the team carries out a forensic examination. 467 00:36:07,840 --> 00:36:11,920 JAMES: Looking at the edges of the bones where these bodies have been cut in half, 468 00:36:12,000 --> 00:36:13,120 they find that they're brittle, 469 00:36:13,200 --> 00:36:15,440 they're fractured, they're jagged. 470 00:36:16,400 --> 00:36:20,800 Bone dries out in the soil, it loses collagen, it becomes brittle, 471 00:36:21,400 --> 00:36:22,640 and all of these bones have been 472 00:36:22,720 --> 00:36:26,400 fractured in a way that showed that this had happened long after death. 473 00:36:29,040 --> 00:36:32,880 NARRATOR: There's only one explanation for what they found. 474 00:36:34,520 --> 00:36:39,560 The skeletons must have been dug up and then cut into pieces. 475 00:36:41,000 --> 00:36:43,040 JAMES: So the question is then... 476 00:36:43,120 --> 00:36:46,760 Why did them up after they've been buried? 477 00:36:58,200 --> 00:37:00,720 NARRATOR: Archaeologists believe the 42 skeletons they 478 00:37:00,800 --> 00:37:03,800 found are just the tip of the iceberg. 479 00:37:06,200 --> 00:37:08,600 JON: We don't know what lies under the rest of the island, 480 00:37:08,680 --> 00:37:10,840 but the amount of skeletons they found, 481 00:37:10,920 --> 00:37:13,960 they were probably looking at thousands of skeletons on the site, 482 00:37:16,240 --> 00:37:21,000 layer after layer, essentially a killing field. 483 00:37:26,800 --> 00:37:33,520 ♪ ♪ 484 00:37:34,960 --> 00:37:37,040 NARRATOR: Historian, Giovanni Caniato, 485 00:37:37,120 --> 00:37:40,280 believes clues as to what's behind this mass grave 486 00:37:40,360 --> 00:37:44,080 and its brutal burial methods lie in the history books. 487 00:37:47,720 --> 00:37:49,400 GIOVANNI (off-screen): From the 14th Century on, 488 00:37:49,480 --> 00:37:52,440 you begin to see accounts of mass death, 489 00:37:53,080 --> 00:37:55,000 thousands are dying, hundreds a day, 490 00:37:55,080 --> 00:37:57,840 and bodies are piling up in the streets, 491 00:37:59,120 --> 00:38:03,160 and this fills the population with fear, suspicion. 492 00:38:03,240 --> 00:38:05,000 What's causing this? 493 00:38:06,160 --> 00:38:08,960 And this is death that spares no one, 494 00:38:09,040 --> 00:38:12,480 from the poorest to the richest and the most powerful. 495 00:38:14,920 --> 00:38:19,160 JON: The Venetians don't know what the cause of these terrible outbreaks actually are, 496 00:38:19,760 --> 00:38:20,640 But there is one clue. 497 00:38:20,720 --> 00:38:23,040 They begin to notice that the ships that are coming in, 498 00:38:23,120 --> 00:38:27,280 that often the sailors are getting ill a short time after they dock at the port. 499 00:38:30,360 --> 00:38:33,120 JAMES: What we now know is that this is the age of the Black Death. 500 00:38:33,560 --> 00:38:38,040 The Bubonic Plague, carried in fleas on rats, 501 00:38:38,880 --> 00:38:43,200 and as this plague spreads throughout Europe and kills so many, 502 00:38:43,640 --> 00:38:47,160 it will even hit a place like Venice because rats can be found in ships, 503 00:38:48,000 --> 00:38:53,880 and it's ironic that for all of the power and the wealth that comes to Venice 504 00:38:53,960 --> 00:38:59,360 in the hold of a ship, now comes death, unstoppable death. 505 00:39:08,000 --> 00:39:11,200 NARRATOR: Now, for Giovanni, it all comes together. 506 00:39:11,840 --> 00:39:16,680 He realizes the merchant's building is much more than a simple warehouse. 507 00:39:17,000 --> 00:39:21,360 GIOVANNI: Venetians understood that it was a good idea 508 00:39:21,440 --> 00:39:26,120 to have a place for people who were suspected to have the plague, 509 00:39:27,400 --> 00:39:30,800 and so they created Lazzaretto Nuovo. 510 00:39:34,240 --> 00:39:37,280 NARRATOR: Historical records and archaeological findings 511 00:39:37,360 --> 00:39:42,480 allow them to rebuild the isolation facility as it was in 1562, 512 00:39:43,040 --> 00:39:46,000 revealing the truth about what happened here. 513 00:39:50,600 --> 00:39:52,360 PETER: This was an island where all the ships 514 00:39:52,440 --> 00:39:56,240 coming into the lagoon would wait for 40 days, 515 00:39:56,320 --> 00:39:59,160 quaranta in Italian, or quarantine. 516 00:40:01,080 --> 00:40:05,760 GIOVANNI: This building marks the height of a revolutionary Venetian innovation. 517 00:40:06,520 --> 00:40:11,640 It was the world's largest and most sophisticated quarantine building 518 00:40:11,720 --> 00:40:13,360 of the 16th Century. 519 00:40:15,760 --> 00:40:17,280 JAMES: It's amazing when you think about it. 520 00:40:17,360 --> 00:40:19,640 This is 400 years before germ theory, 521 00:40:20,160 --> 00:40:24,280 but here they are figuring out that you need to isolate people 522 00:40:24,360 --> 00:40:26,720 and move them away so that they don't spread it. 523 00:40:27,440 --> 00:40:28,720 Sound familiar? 524 00:40:33,240 --> 00:40:35,600 NARRATOR: For Giovanni and the team of excavators, 525 00:40:35,680 --> 00:40:38,040 the mass graves begin to make sense. 526 00:40:39,760 --> 00:40:44,960 JAMES: So, what you see is with an estimate of over 500 a day dying, 527 00:40:45,040 --> 00:40:49,280 this quarantine island now becomes the overflow 528 00:40:49,360 --> 00:40:52,480 for the dying and for the dead. 529 00:40:54,640 --> 00:40:58,840 GIOVANNI: Can you imagine to live in this island with thousands of other people, 530 00:40:58,920 --> 00:41:00,560 half of them dying? 531 00:41:01,960 --> 00:41:04,920 GIOVANNI (off-screen): You couldn't move, you couldn't go out from the building. 532 00:41:05,520 --> 00:41:07,960 Armed guards are checking that you don't move, 533 00:41:08,040 --> 00:41:10,800 and if you try to run away you are killed immediately. 534 00:41:12,120 --> 00:41:14,160 That was a terrible situation. 535 00:41:18,360 --> 00:41:20,560 NARRATOR: And the team realizes even the 536 00:41:20,640 --> 00:41:23,720 desecration of the bones serves a chilling purpose. 537 00:41:29,000 --> 00:41:31,280 JON: With hundreds of bodies a day arriving on the island, 538 00:41:31,360 --> 00:41:33,920 there just wasn't enough space to bury everyone, 539 00:41:36,160 --> 00:41:39,160 so they'd have to cut down into the existing graves there, 540 00:41:39,240 --> 00:41:40,400 cutting through bodies, 541 00:41:40,480 --> 00:41:43,200 cutting through corpses to create space for new bodies. 542 00:41:46,240 --> 00:41:48,960 I mean this is quite a picture of hell really 543 00:41:49,040 --> 00:41:50,480 for the people that were working there. 544 00:41:53,880 --> 00:41:59,520 JAMES: These inscriptions on the wall take on new meaning and poignancy. 545 00:42:00,520 --> 00:42:04,280 Whoever wrote these probably didn't realize this would be the 546 00:42:04,360 --> 00:42:07,360 last thing they would ever write and the 547 00:42:07,440 --> 00:42:10,360 last trace of them, other than their bones. 548 00:42:19,520 --> 00:42:21,600 NARRATOR: But even with the plague island, 549 00:42:21,680 --> 00:42:25,200 this unique city state is brought slowly to its knees. 550 00:42:26,920 --> 00:42:29,000 JAMES: Nearly a third of the population is gone, 551 00:42:29,080 --> 00:42:32,320 practically overnight, and that includes key people. 552 00:42:33,120 --> 00:42:37,280 Shipwrights, soldiers, sailors, merchants, 553 00:42:37,360 --> 00:42:40,000 all of the people that made Venice great. 554 00:42:41,880 --> 00:42:45,200 Venice never recovers her position. 555 00:42:48,760 --> 00:42:52,920 JON (off-screen): It goes to show just how fragile even great civilizations can be. 556 00:42:54,760 --> 00:42:57,440 Their warships allowed them to dominate the seas, 557 00:42:57,520 --> 00:42:59,880 giving them control of ports and trade routes. 558 00:43:01,920 --> 00:43:04,080 Their merchant vessels sailed from port to port a 559 00:43:04,160 --> 00:43:06,080 massing fast fortunes, 560 00:43:06,160 --> 00:43:08,600 making connections around the Mediterranean, 561 00:43:08,680 --> 00:43:10,880 all the way to Constantinople. 562 00:43:13,520 --> 00:43:17,360 JON: But it's actually those contacts that ended up bringing death to Venice. 563 00:43:17,440 --> 00:43:19,760 There was no defense against the plague, 564 00:43:19,840 --> 00:43:23,120 all their technology could do nothing about this deadly disease. 565 00:43:25,280 --> 00:43:27,840 Essentially, Venice became a victim of its own success. 566 00:43:29,720 --> 00:43:34,040 ♪ ♪ 567 00:43:34,120 --> 00:43:38,800 JAMES (off-screen): But Venice adapted, and the Venetians rode out the Bubonic Plague. 568 00:43:42,280 --> 00:43:45,960 Today their city is one of the most beautiful and most visited in the world, 569 00:43:48,000 --> 00:43:51,120 and that speaks to the power of the human spirit, 570 00:43:52,480 --> 00:43:54,960 that speaks to resilience, 571 00:43:55,040 --> 00:44:00,440 and that speaks to our ability as humans to go through something tough 572 00:44:00,520 --> 00:44:02,680 and come out on the other side. 573 00:44:04,160 --> 00:44:06,720 ♪ ♪ 574 00:44:07,320 --> 00:44:08,480 Captioned by Cotter Media Group.