The Monoxylon Expeditions: The starting Points of a Nautical Archaeological Experiment

The aim of this article is to present the starting points of the archaeological experiment named Expedition Monoxylon IV. The expedition, which took place in 2023, was an experiment with a replica of a dug out boat in the Aegean Sea. It followed up a series of earlier experiments (Tichý, 2016; 2020), one of which took place in the Western Mediterranean. Knowledge of the nautical characteristics of the three vessels and also their crews was gradually gained. The previous tests improved not only the replica but also our knowledge of its behaviour on the sea. The 2023 experiment became the pinnacle of the expeditions. It is also useful to compare the practical results with the suppositions about the Bracciano boats (Mineo, 2015; Mineo, et al., 2021; Caruso Fermé, et al., 2023; Gibaja, et al., 2024). Apart from describing the rationale of the experiment, this article will also answer the question of what the nautical characteristics of Bracciano 1 are.