The Diolkos — A New Video

I recently came upon this animated documentary short called the “Diolkos for 1500 Years” depicting the use of the ancient diolkos portage road across the Isthmus of Corinth.  It is in Greek, of course, but you can still follow along.  The film was initiated by the Society of Ancient Greek Technology, produced by the Technical Chamber of Greece, and directed by T.P. Tassios, N. Mikas, and G. Polyzos.  In three parts, it shows the transporting of a small merchant ship of the 4th century BC the 7-8 km distance from one sea to the other.  The video was awarded best ancient film at the International Film festival in Cyprus (2009) and best educational film at the International Meeting of Archaeological Film (2010).

You can  find the first and third parts of the short video on Youtube, or the entire film here.  The short is a fascinating reconstruction of what must have been an incredible operation, but it does raise questions about the use of the road.  Was it really that easy to transport a 30,000 lb wooden vessel overland in antiquity?  Ten guys easy?  And what evidence is there to suggest that commercial vessels were transferred overland in antiquity?