Israeli archaeologists have unearthed cargo from the oldest deep-sea shipwreck ever found. The ship, believed to have sunk 3,300 years ago either because of a storm or piracy, was located 90 kilometers off Israel’s northern coast at a depth of 1,800 meters.
Archeologists have so far recovered hundreds of remarkably intact amphorae, large clay jars used for storage. But there’s more about this find than just the artifacts themselves.
Previously, archaeologists believed that trade during this period was limited to “hugging the coastline,” staying within sight of land.
From the vantage point of the shipwreck, there is only water all you can see across the horizon, with no shred of land in sight. This finding confirms that sailors of the Late Bronze Age were apt navigators, capable of navigating the open ocean using celestial bodies like the sun and stars.
“This find reveals to us as never before the ancient mariners’ navigational skills,” Jacob Sharvit, head of the Israel Antiquities Authority’s marine unit, told AP. “It showed our ancestors were capable of traversing the Mediterranean Sea without a line of sight to any coast.”
Ancient Navigation Unveiled
The shipwreck was discovered during a routine oil and gas survey by the company Energean. Robot submersibles captured images of the vessel, which were sent to the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA). When archaeologists from the IAA analyzed the pictures and retrieved samples, they were stunned to find the shipwreck was from the Bronze Age — it’s the oldest shipwreck known thus far. The oldest intact shipwreck in the world is a 23-meter, 2,400-year-old vessel found at the bottom of the Black Sea.
According to Sharvit, the location and condition of the wreck suggest that ancient sailors were capable of sophisticated navigation techniques.
By observing the positions of the sun during the day and the stars at night, they could determine their latitude and approximate their course. Ancient sailors may have also used tools such as a version of the gnomon, a simple sundial device for measuring the angle of the sun, and relied on their knowledge of constellations to guide them. These methods allowed them to navigate even when they were out of sight of land.
In addition to celestial navigation, sailors also paid close attention to natural signs such as the behavior of sea birds, the color of the water, and the presence of certain marine life, which could indicate proximity to land. They combined this observational knowledge with oral traditions and accumulated experience passed down through generations, including how to catch currents.
Only two of the amphorae, likely used by the Canaanite people, were removed to ensure the preservation of the site. Previously, only two other shipwrecks with cargo have been identified from the late Bronze Age, both of which were discovered close to the Turkish coast.
“The discovery of this boat now changes our entire understanding of ancient mariner abilities,” according to Dr. Karnit Bahartan of Energean.
“It is the very first to be found at such a great distance with no line of sight to any landmass,” she concludes.
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