The oldest shipwreck ever found in the deep sea has been discovered on the Mediterranean Sea floor, shedding light on trade during the late Bronze Age. The 39- to 46-foot-long ship was found roughly 56 miles off the northern coast of Israel at a depth of nearly 6,000 feet during a seafloor survey by a natural gas exploration company.
The wreck contained hundreds of intact Canaanite amphorae—clay jars used to store goods—suggesting it sank between 1400 BCE and 1300 BCE. The deep-sea discovery challenges assumptions that Bronze Age trade occurred only close to shorelines and suggests mariners may have used celestial navigation. While the exact cause of the sinking remains unknown, the ship settled without capsizing, and experts speculate a storm or pirate attack could have been responsible.
The world’s oldest found shipwreck is over 4,200 years old and is located in waters 50 feet deep off the coast of the Greek island Dokos.
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