A Roman shipwreck thought to be more than 2,000 years old has been discovered off Sicily's coast, in what Italy has called one of the most significant archaeological finds in years.
Specialist "Art Squad" police divers found the wreckage around 50 metres beneath the surface close to Mazara del Vallo, on the island's far western tip.
The discovery came after local fishermen alerted authorities to the site, Italian media reported.
The Carabinieri Command for the Protection of Cultural Heritage, better known as the Carabinieri TPC - which fights art and antiquities crimes - was then sent to the seabed to investigate.
Italy's Culture Ministry dated the ship to the first or second century BC.
It was found packed with hundreds of well-preserved ceramic jars once used to carry wine, oil and grain, and measures around 70 feet long by 20 feet across.
Its cargo consisted of hundreds of slender amphorae jars of the 'Dressel 1A' type, used for transporting wine.
Sicily, which was colonised by the ancient Greeks from around the eighth century BC and conquered by the Romans in about 240 BC, was an island of major trade importance in the ancient world.
Archaeologists who spoke to Il Messaggero described the wreck as being in "excellent condition".
Free diver Giacomo De Mola was among those who encountered the marvel firsthand.
"This is, without a doubt, the most incredible discovery of my life," he wrote on social media.
He thought he had seen a rock on the seabed, but got closer and his "heart stopped".
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"It's hard to describe what it feels like to be among the first humans, in nearly 20 centuries, to see that place again," Mr De Mola added.
"The sea never ceases to amaze us," he added. "This time we didn't just find a wreck, we found a piece of our history."
Italy's Culture Minister Alessandro Giuli added: "The sea continues to bring back precious fragments of our history.
"The Mazara del Vallo wreck speaks to us of the people, the routes, and the exchanges that made the Mediterranean a crossroads of civilisations.
"Research will continue to unravel its history and deliver it to the community."
Mr Giuli described the find as "one of the most important underwater archaeological discoveries of recent years".
His Culture Ministry said the Superintendency of the Sea would now document and study the site to establish its full archaeological context.
Protective measures for the wreck are now set to be put in place.
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