A young beach lifeguard at Latina south of Rome became an 'accidental archaeologist' when a bather came across the neck of a Roman amphora poking put of the shoreline there on Friday, Azernews reports, citing ANSA.

The lifeguard, 19, immediately retrieved the second-century BCE artifact with the utmost care, Il Messaggero reported, and handed it over to the local coast guard service.

Experts said the amphora, which was described as perfectly preserved, had been washed ashore overnight.

It will probably be housed in a museum in the southern Lazio city, founded by Benito Mussolini after he drained the Pontine Marshes in the late 1920s and early 30s.