A cobblestone road, built around 7,000 years ago, has been discovered under the waters of the Adriatic Sea near the island of Korčula in Croatia, shedding light on the level of development and organization of Neolithic communities that lived in the region thousands of years ago.

The discovery was made at the underwater archaeological site of Solina, one of the most important prehistoric settlements in the Mediterranean. According to archaeologists, the road served as a connection between the settlement and the main part of the island.

The road is about four meters wide and is built of carefully placed stone slabs. Today it lies 4 to 5 meters below the sea surface, where for thousands of years it has been covered by layers of clay and marine sediments. After cleaning the area, researchers found that the structure is in excellent condition. The discovery is the result of a collaboration between the University of Zadar, the Dubrovnik Museums, the Kaštela City Museum and the Korčula Municipal Museum, with the help of divers and underwater photographers. According to the University of Zadar, this road was used by people around 4900 BC.

An artificial island from the Neolithic period
The road leads to the settlement of Solina, which, according to researchers, was built on an artificial island. This island was created by human intervention and was separated from the rest of Korčula by a narrow strip of land.

The archaeological site was identified in 2021 by archaeologist Mate Parica of the University of Zadar after he noticed unusual formations on the seabed through satellite images. Subsequent dives revealed stone walls and the remains of a well-organized settlement. Experts point out that Solina's sheltered position in the Adriatic has been crucial for its preservation. The surrounding islands have cushioned the impact of waves, allowing the settlement's road and walls to remain almost intact for thousands of years.

The site is located in a bay between the old town of Korcula and the village of Lubarda. The walls of the settlement are located at a depth of about four meters and are visible even to amateur divers with a mask, while some of the discovered objects are now exhibited in the Municipal Museum of Korcula. Radiocarbon dating of wooden remains found near the settlement shows that it was built around 4900 BC, in the Neolithic period, when people began to abandon nomadic life and create permanent settlements.

Archaeologists attribute the construction of the road and the settlement to the Hvar culture, a well-known Neolithic and Copper Age culture that developed along the eastern Adriatic coast. Stone axes, blades, decorated ceramic vessels and other artifacts characteristic of this culture have also been found in the area.

A second underwater settlement is discovered
During the excavations at Solina, researchers identified another previously unknown settlement in Gradina Bay, on the other side of the island of Korčula. This settlement is also located 4 to 5 meters underwater and shows great similarities to Solina, both in terms of architecture and artifacts found. Divers have discovered stone axes, blades and ceramic fragments that are also associated with the Hvar culture.

According to archaeologists, the existence of two similar settlements near the same island indicates that Korcula had a much larger and more organized Neolithic population than previously thought.

Sunken Neolithic settlements are extremely rare in the Mediterranean, as most coastal settlements have been destroyed by erosion or remain above sea level. For this reason, the discovery on Korcula is considered a valuable source of information about the lifestyle, construction techniques and social organization of communities living on the Adriatic coast some seven thousand years ago.