3,300-year-old ship discovered off Israeli coast, the oldest ever found in deep waters
Researchers say location of wreck, carrying hundreds of intact storage vessels, proves Late Bronze Age mariners could journey far out to sea
Renee Ghert-Zand is the health reporter and a feature writer for The Times of Israel.
In a groundbreaking archaeological discovery, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced Thursday that a natural gas company’s standard survey of the Eastern Mediterranean floor had uncovered the most ancient ship ever found in the deep seas.
The discovery of the remains of the ship from the 14th-13th century BCE proves that Late Bronze Age mariners could navigate the seas without a line of sight to the shore, contrary to what was previously believed, the IAA said.
The approximately 3,300-year-old ship with a cargo of hundreds of intact amphorae was found 90 kilometers off northern Israel’s coast, at a depth of 1.8 km.
“Only two other shipwrecks with cargo are known from the Late Bronze Age in the Mediterranean Sea…both found off the Turkish coast. Yet both of those shipwrecks were found relatively close to shore,” said Jacob Sharvit, head of the IAA marine unit.
“There is tremendous potential here for research. [This newly discovered] ship is preserved at such a great depth that time has frozen since the moment of disaster. Its body and contents have not been disturbed by the human hand, nor affected by waves and currents, which do impact shipwrecks in shallower waters,” he said.
The exciting recent find began when a submersible robot operated by Energean, a natural gas exploration and production company operating several offshore fields, spotted what seemed to be a large pile of jugs heaped on the seafloor.
“We are in ongoing contact with the Israel Antiquities Authority, and when we sent them the images it turned out to be a sensational discovery, far beyond what we could imagine,” said Karnit Bahartan, environmental lead at Energean.
Shipwrecks found near the Turkish coast were accessible using normal diving equipment. However the depth of this shipwreck necessitated Energean and the IAA to team up to conduct a more technically advanced investigative operation.
Using the “Energean Star” ship, equipped to conduct deep-sea work, technicians used a specially-built tool designed to extract artifacts with minimal risk of damage to the entire assemblage.
During the operation, the team confirmed that the ship was 12-14 meters long and was transporting hundreds of vessels. Some were visible above the ocean floor, but the muddy bottom concealed a second layer of amphorae.
“It seems that wooden beams of the ship are also buried within the mud,” Sharvit said.
Over two days, two Canaanite vessels, each from a different end of the ship, were extracted. This was done to minimize disturbances to the intact assemblage of the boat and its cargo.
Sharvit noted that international commerce significantly increased during the Late Bronze Age, with the technological qualities of ships greatly improved. This allowed large volumes of goods to be transported and raised the status of port cities such as Canaanite Byblos and other Phoenician cities.
However, “The academic assumption until now was that trade in that time was executed by safely flitting from port to port, hugging the coastline within eye contact. The discovery of this boat now changes our entire understanding of ancient mariner abilities. It is the very first to be found at such a great distance with no line of sight to any landmass,” he said.
It is presumed that the seafarers navigated using the celestial bodies, by taking sightings and angles of the sun and star positions.
There is no way to be sure why the ship sank. It could have been due to a storm. Alternatively, pirates known as “The Sea Peoples” could have inflicted damage on it.
“It is quite possible that answers to these questions will be forthcoming from further research on the boat, or they may remain unsolved until extensive excavation is executed on the ship, using advanced technologies,” Sharvit said.
The vessels extracted from the sea floor will be on display during pre-opening tours of the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein National Campus for the Archaeology of Israel in Jerusalem.
