Cargo from ‘world’s oldest shipwreck’ found after 3,300 years lost at sea

PRICELESS historic cargo from a ship that had been lost at sea for thousands of years has been discovered by accident.

The cargo was found nearly 2000m underwater laying on the sea bed off the northern coast of Israel.

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Hundreds of intact treasure known as amphorae were recovered from the wreck and believed to be a whopping 3,300 years old.

The discovery suggests sailors thousands of years ago were able to navigate the oceans by taking bearings from the sun and stars, say experts at the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA).

Jacob Sharvit, Head of the Israel Antiquities Authority Marine Unit said on social media: “The ship seems to have sunk in crisis, either due to a storm or to an attempted piracy attack – a well-known occurrence in the Late Bronze Age.

“This is both the first and the oldest ship found in the Eastern Mediterranean deep sea, ninety kilometers from the nearest shore.”

He continued: “This is a world-class history-changing discovery.

“This find reveals to us as never before the ancient mariners’ navigational skills – capable of traversing the Mediterranean Sea without a line of sight to any coast. From this geographical point, only the horizon is visible all around.”

For all these years the cargo had been lost at sea.

It was not until a routine oil and gas survey from company Energean was carried out that the Bronze Age cargo was found.

The cargo was caught by the company’s modern robot submersibles.

Before finding the jars, they were originally looking for possible new energy sources off the Israeli coast.

There are only two other shipwrecks with cargo that are known from the Late Bronze Age in the Mediterranean Sea.

But both other shipwrecks were found using regular diving equipment, compared to the accidental findings from the subersible.

Dr Karnit Bahartan from Energean recalled the moment the extraordinary discovery was made: “We saw the unusual sight of 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.”

The new-found artefacts are expected to go on display this summer in Jerusalem at the National Campus for the Archeology of Israel.

The Director of Israel Antiquities Authority Eli Escusido said: “The important significance of these finds prompted a decision to exhibit these Canaanite vessels extracted from the seafloor, and to thus tell the public the story of this boat.

“I earnestly thank Energean for their alertness in identifying this ancient cargo, and for dedicating the resources which have already enabled initial understandings gleaned from this rare shipwreck.”

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