The Venetian Warships of Lake Garda. News of the Benacus Project: What If Fresh Water Is No Longer Protective?
Round 1
Reviewer 1 Report
The work presented is original and very interesting.
Especially since research on this type of vessel in inland waters is not often published internationally.
The authors are familiar with the issues and have access to a rich source of information.
Nevertheless, and knowing the difficulties that may have been encountered in the fieldwork due to covid-19, we believe that the geophysical techniques could be specified a little more. Although it is true that it is indicated that the use of these techniques was unsuccessful, we believe it is necessary to specify, perhaps, a little more what systems were used. That is, the survey lines, the distance between them, the model and technical specifications of the SBP, or how the use of ERT (Electrical Resistivity Tomography) and GPR (Ground Penetrating Radar) was attempted.
These data, completing the section on techniques, will, we believe, help to better understand the results so readers will be able to evaluate the usefulness or effectiveness of the proposed methods.
Author Response
I wrote a new short part about the technical aspect of the survey and I hope that can work
Reviewer 2 Report
The article is dedicated to the galley and two fuste that Venetians employed on Lake Garda during the Cambrai war. The A. details the struggle of the Venetians to control the lake during the 15th and 16th centuries. The investigation briefly describes a shipwreck discovered and excavated in the 1960s, which probably corresponds to the galley. Then it provides the outcome of a recent geophysical survey to spot one of the fuste. Then the paper details the damages caused to the wreck by Dreissena Polymorpha.
According to the title, the article deals with conservation issues. However, the abstract does not refer to them. The introduction should explain further the approach adopted by the A. In other words, the abstract and the introduction should correspond more to the subject stated in the title.
18: does the keyword “zebra mussel” correspond to Dreissena Polymorpha? That should be explained in the text.
Figure 1: please provide a scale for the left map.
38: Dominio di Terraferma > please explain
49–50: explain the strategic significance of Lake Garda for Venice
56: Venice hired a great captain of fortune named Nicolò Piccinino
The Duke hired Piccinino.
60–61: please provide a date.
71–83: dates should be provided for each event described in the paragraph.
75: “The following year”. Which year? This is not clear.
Figure 2: the map should be enlarged and include Brescia. It should also show the various toponyms mentioned in the text: Ponale, Val Sabbia, Valle di Ledro, Mori.
86: “Cambrai war”
Please provide the dates.
98: please provide dates of Julius II's rule.
100: This is the Cambrai war mentioned earlier. That should be explained.
101–102: “but in this particular case, circumstances”
Please rewrite.
105–106: if the ships of Lazise are those already mentioned earlier (86), it should be detailed.
108: “mainland”: the Venetian territory?
Figure 3: please provide scales.
113: “Lazise shipwreck” would certainly fit better than “the shipwreck of Lazise”.
141: the sentence should be turned into the past tense.
10 & 151, 153: the A. should choose the plural of fusta, either fuste in Italian, which the A. uses l. 10, or fustas that the A. writes l. 151 and 153.
161: “however we only have preliminary studies from both”. This is not clear. The A. certainly mentions the galley of San Marco, but what is the second shipwreck? The A. lists several shipwrecks earlier, but which is the other hull the A. refers to?
168: “a source”. Which source? Please detail.
168–181: please detail the distances provided by the literary source (both in medieval units and meters) and those recorded in the field during the investigation.
184: a new paragraph should start there.
Figure 6: scale needed.
Words in Italian (rembata, fusta, etc.) should be italicised.
Author Response
I agree that the historical context is a bit long, but on the other hand, this research wanted to give an answer to this story. So I consider it important for the reader to have a fairly complete framing.
About the documentation, for the history of Venetian flet as usual I did research in several libraries, while I used archives of local newspaper, Soprintendenza and Verona Museum for the story of site. Anyway I added to the paper a reference of the only cartography that we have.
Reviewer 3 Report
The author certainly knows the subject he is talking about and the bibliography and documentation necessary to deal with it. As a scientific article, I consider it interesting and relevant both from a historical and archaeological point of view, as well as with regard to climate change and the challenges it poses for the conservation of underwater heritage.
The use of images, plans, and details is appropriate and enriching for the reader.
However, from a scientific point of view, I consider that the historical context may be perhaps a bit long.
Nevertheless, it is such an interesting story and is told in such a pleasant and coherent way that I personally enjoyed reading it very much.
Regarding the methodology, I find the study method with non-intrusive techniques and a multidisciplinary approach very interesting and well thought out. However, I would like to know more about the process of collecting, handling, and interpreting documentation and the possible use of cartography. This is a personal wish, which does not mean that the approach presented is not complete.
Regarding the conclusions, the plot twist with Dreissena Polymorpha as the protagonist is of particular relevance in the current scene. I believe that both this and future studies are vital to address some of the challenges that the future holds for submerged heritage.
My congratulations to the author.
Author Response
Thank you very much for your valuable comments.
