Let Rome in Tiber melt, and the wide arch,  Of the ranged empire fall! Here is my space. Kingdoms are clay: our dungy earth alike. Feeds beast as man: the nobleness of life, Is to do thus; when such a mutual pair. 

     CLEOPATRA'S PALACE 

In the mid fifth century A.D. the Royal quarters in Alexandria's harbors sank beneath the waves. The Palaces and temples on the islands did not spontaneously sink. A series of tidal waves and earthquakes had destroyed the islands and their royal buildings. At least twenty-three earthquakes shook the islands between 320 and 1303 AD, with the worst of the bunch occurring in 365 AD. Over a period of sixteen centuries, the royal quarters sank twenty feet beneath the sea. Inch by inch the city where Marc Antony fell on his sword and Cleopatra died to the bite of an Asp sank forever. Today, what were temples, houses, palaces, streets, jewelry, statues, and amphorae litter the floor of the harbor. Over time, sand and other debris that piled up on the harbor floor hid them. More recently, mass amounts of sewage have been pumped into the harbor and now further cover the royal rubble. Many historians have theorized on the size and position of the sunken quarters of Cleopatra. However, no one ever knew what the positions of the islands, which held Cleopatra and King Ptolmey actually were. No one knew that is until now...

Six-teen centuries after the royal quarters sank beneath the waters of the harbor an underwater explorer, Frank Goddio began exploring the islands that had been little more than legend. Goddio and his team of expert divers and marine archaeologists are now diving into the past. Already Goddio and his team have confirmed ancient reports that the island of Antirhodos was paved completely in limestone blocks and covered with buildings. Another remarkable find was the now-submerged peninsula that held Mark Antony's personal sanctuary of Timonium. It was not easy locating all of these relics for not only are the various buildings and artifacts covered by silt and sewage but all of the pollution and additional sewage limit visibility to a few feet at best. Another problem for Goddio was actually receiving clearance to dive into the harbor. This area is considered top security by the Egyptian military, so  receiving permission to dive took our esteemed underwater explorer from 1980 to 1992 which is when he could finally start the dives. Frank Goddio had been dreaming about what he would find for twelve years. What Goddio has found so far includes a large granite head that is possibly of the Emperor Augustus, Two Sphinxes, a statue of a Priest of Isis (an Egyptian Goddess) holding a Canopic Jar, and a wrecked ship dating back to 90 BC. Presently plans are being made to build network of plastic tubes and bubbles from which visitors to Alexandria can see the under water city for themselves. Many nautical archaeologists strongly disagree with this idea. However as always no one knows what the future holds for the ancient city.