«This is a world-class sensation»
A recently discovered 3,300-year-old shipwreck has changed the way scientists think about sailing in the ancient world.
According to the Israel Antiquities Authority, a 3,300-year-old ship was discovered at the bottom of the Mediterranean Sea, making it one one of the oldest shipwrecks ever discovered, and changes the way we think about sailing in the ancient world.
According to CNN, the vessel is believed to date back to the 13th or 14th century BC, the department said in a statement. The ancient ship was discovered 90 kilometers (about 56 miles) offshore, in waters 1.8 kilometers (1.1 miles) deep, with hundreds of intact vessels still on board, the statement said.
The remains of the vessel were discovered during an environmental survey of the seabed by London-based natural gas company Energean, according to Karnit Bahartan, the company's head of environmental affairs.
According to Bahartan, during the examination, an “unusual sight similar to a large accumulation of urns” was discovered. It turned out to be “a sensational discovery, greater than any of us could have imagined,” she added.
Energean then carried out an operation to recover the jars from the sunken vessel — they will be displayed this summer in the newly built National at the Jay and Jeanie Schottenstein Israel Archaeological Center in Jerusalem.
Yaakov Sharvit, director of the maritime archeology department of the antiquities authority, said the ship may have been wrecked by a storm or a collision with pirates.
< p>“This is the first and earliest shipwreck discovered to date in the deep sea of the Eastern Mediterranean,” he said.
Sharvit said the jars found on board were trade vessels that likely contained oil, wine or other agricultural products such as fruit, indicating that maritime trade was conducted across the sea.
Previous knowledge of how ships traded suggested that voyages were made from port to port , rather than across the open sea, and those on board could still see the shore.
“The newly discovered ship changes the concept of sailing in the ancient world,” said Yaakov Sharvit.< /p>
“This is a world-class sensation: the discovery demonstrates the impressive navigational abilities of ancient people, which allowed them to cross the Mediterranean Sea without any eye contact with the shore, since from this distance you can only see the horizon,” he added.