Today, about half of the ancient town lies beneath the surface of the Mediterranean.
It’s free, every week, in your inbox.
But preserving submerged ruins is no easy task.
Data can be transmitted in two ways.
This includes tracking the environmental conditions that could distort the artefacts.
Think of it as an underwater WhatsApp, Dr Petrioli says.
In October, the award-winning spinoff completed a 9mn Series A round, raising its total funding to 13mn.
We wanted to save a castle from A to Z.
Founded in 2015, the startup began as a crowdfunding platform connecting donors to owners/managers of historical monuments.
We didnt have enough capital to buy one but we had a growing community.
When we launched the first collective purchase campaign, we raised over 1.6mn in 45 days, Delaume says.
Its a share of a company, Delaume explains.
We create a company for each castle we operate and then we sell the shares to the public.
Each share costs 79.
I am like a CEO with thousands and thousands of little shareholders, he says.
Nevertheless, co-castellans have their own say in big management decisions, with each share representing one vote.
The community is also involved through activities, meetings, and assemblies, both in person and online.
Dartagnans currently employs 14 people and operates solely in France, with future plans for international expansion.
Within the next decade, Delaume hopes that theyll have accomplished half of the restoration needed for the castles.
Another goal is to keep growing what he calls a happy community.
The startup offers multiple services.
Story byIoanna Lykiardopoulou
Ioanna is a writer at TNW.
With a background in the humanities, she has a soft spot for social impact-enabling technologies.
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