Marine battering ram

In 2008, a battering ram from a ship was rescued from the sea off Sicily in an area known as Acqualadrone, which translates as the Bay of the Pirates. Carbon dating placed it at about 260 BC, which implies that it was involved in the First Punic War between Carthage and Rome, which eventually led to the fall of Carthage. The battering ram, more correctly known as a rostrum, was constructed of an outer coating of bronze around a wooden core which had been preserved due to submersion beneath the sea floor.
Now, scientists from Europe and the USA have taken a closer look at brown and black wood pieces from the rostrum using X-ray absorption spectroscopy and GC/MS in a study published in Analytical Chemistry. They revealed that both samples were pinewood with the black pieces showing signs of waterproofing using pine pitch.
Significant anmounts of sulphur were also found in the wood in a form that could be converted to sulphuric acid, so special care must be taken to ensure its preservation.