Complex Geophysical Survey of the Phanagoria Water Area: Advanced Techniques

Abstract

Summary Phanagoria is the largest ancient Greek city within the territory of Russia. It founded in the 6th century BC on the shore of the modern Taman Gulf. By the 1st cent. AD the first harbor and the coastal part of Phanagoria were flooded by the transgression of the Black Sea level. A new pier was built in the 3rd cent. AD, but after 5 centuries it was flooded too. Now all the flooded structures are covered by sandy-silty sediments and can be studied either by underwater excavations or using geophysical methods. Since 2011 magnetic and seismic surveys have been conducted near the offshore site of Phanagoria having an area of more than 15 hectares. As a result of these surveys, a number of interesting features were discovered. The majority of the study area in shallow water (water depth less than 1.5 m) remains poorly studied due to technical restrictions of the applied techniques and equipment. Integration of different techniques allows to explore the survey area of archaeological excavations in greater detail in view of the limitations of each method. The tests of 3D SBP system Sleipnir showed that the results of 3D ultra­high resolution seismic survey can be used for solving archeological tasks.