13th century Canaan was an international maritime trading Kingdom

[shunyadragon]

Source: https://www.sci.news/archaeology/shipwreck-canaanite-amphorae-13042.html

3,300-Year-Old Shipwreck Loaded with Canaanite Amphorae Discovered in Mediterranean Sea

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Source: https://www.sci.news/archaeology/shipwreck-canaanite-amphorae-13042.html

Jun 24, 2024 by News Staff
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Next »The ancient ship and its cargo is estimated to be from the 13th century BCE, making it one of the oldest shipwrecks ever discovered.
The Canaanite amphorae from the 3,300-year-old shipwreck. Image credit: Israel Antiquities Authority.

The 3,300-year-old shipwreck was found 90 km (56 miles) from Israel’s shore at a depth of 1.8 km (1.1 miles) on the Mediterranean Sea floor.

“The ship seems to have sunk in crisis, either due to a storm or to an attempted piracy attack,” said Dr. Jacob Sharvit, head of the marine unit at the Israel Antiquities Authority.

“This is both the first and the oldest ship found in the Eastern Mediterranean deep sea, 90 km from the nearest shore.”

“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.”

“To navigate they probably used the celestial bodies, by taking sightings and angles of the Sun and star positions.”

The discovery was made during an environmental survey of the seabed by a team from London-based natural gas production company Energean.

“As part of our ongoing activity to discover and extract natural gas from the deep sea, we conduct surveys that check different parameters, using an advanced submersible robot to scour the seafloor,” said Dr. Karnit Bahartan, head of the environmental staff at Energean.

“About a year ago, during a survey, 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 3,300-year-old shipwreck on the Mediterranean Sea floor. Image credit: Israel Antiquities Authority.

“The robot’s survey and mapping of the site clarified this to be a sunken ship ca. 12-14 m (39-46 feet) long that was transporting hundreds of Late Bronze Age Canaanite storage vessels, of which only some are visible above the ocean floor,” Dr. Sharvit said.

“The muddy bottom conceals a second layer of vessels, and it seems that wooden beams of the ship are also buried within the mud.”

“The vessel type identified in the cargo was designed as the most efficient means of transporting relatively cheap and mass-produced products such as oil, wine and other agricultural products such as fruit.”

“Finding such a great quantity of amphorae on board one single ship is testimony to significant commercial ties between their country of origin and the ancient Near Eastern lands on the Mediterranean coast.”

“This is a truly sensational find. Only two other shipwrecks with cargo are known from the Late Bronze Age in the Mediterranean Sea — the boat from Cape Gelidonya and the Uluburun boat; both found off the Turkish coast.”

“Yet both of those shipwrecks were found relatively near the shore, and were accessible using normal diving equipment.”

“Based on these two finds, 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.”

© Copyright Original Source

[rogue06]

But wasn't virtually every kingdom, except maybe for the most isolated, xenophobic ones, involved in international trade?

[shunyadragon]

But wasn't virtually every kingdom, except maybe for the most isolated, xenophobic ones, involved in international trade?

No, the Hebrews were not until maybe after 600 BCE.

[Hypatia_Alexandria]

Source: https://www.sci.news/archaeology/shipwreck-canaanite-amphorae-13042.html

3,300-Year-Old Shipwreck Loaded with Canaanite Amphorae Discovered in Mediterranean Sea

© Copyright Original Source

Source: https://www.sci.news/archaeology/shipwreck-canaanite-amphorae-13042.html

Jun 24, 2024 by News Staff
« Previous
|
Next »The ancient ship and its cargo is estimated to be from the 13th century BCE, making it one of the oldest shipwrecks ever discovered.
The Canaanite amphorae from the 3,300-year-old shipwreck. Image credit: Israel Antiquities Authority.

The 3,300-year-old shipwreck was found 90 km (56 miles) from Israel’s shore at a depth of 1.8 km (1.1 miles) on the Mediterranean Sea floor.

“The ship seems to have sunk in crisis, either due to a storm or to an attempted piracy attack,” said Dr. Jacob Sharvit, head of the marine unit at the Israel Antiquities Authority.

“This is both the first and the oldest ship found in the Eastern Mediterranean deep sea, 90 km from the nearest shore.”

“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.”

“To navigate they probably used the celestial bodies, by taking sightings and angles of the Sun and star positions.”

The discovery was made during an environmental survey of the seabed by a team from London-based natural gas production company Energean.

“As part of our ongoing activity to discover and extract natural gas from the deep sea, we conduct surveys that check different parameters, using an advanced submersible robot to scour the seafloor,” said Dr. Karnit Bahartan, head of the environmental staff at Energean.

“About a year ago, during a survey, 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 3,300-year-old shipwreck on the Mediterranean Sea floor. Image credit: Israel Antiquities Authority.

“The robot’s survey and mapping of the site clarified this to be a sunken ship ca. 12-14 m (39-46 feet) long that was transporting hundreds of Late Bronze Age Canaanite storage vessels, of which only some are visible above the ocean floor,” Dr. Sharvit said.

“The muddy bottom conceals a second layer of vessels, and it seems that wooden beams of the ship are also buried within the mud.”

“The vessel type identified in the cargo was designed as the most efficient means of transporting relatively cheap and mass-produced products such as oil, wine and other agricultural products such as fruit.”

“Finding such a great quantity of amphorae on board one single ship is testimony to significant commercial ties between their country of origin and the ancient Near Eastern lands on the Mediterranean coast.”

“This is a truly sensational find. Only two other shipwrecks with cargo are known from the Late Bronze Age in the Mediterranean Sea — the boat from Cape Gelidonya and the Uluburun boat; both found off the Turkish coast.”

“Yet both of those shipwrecks were found relatively near the shore, and were accessible using normal diving equipment.”

“Based on these two finds, 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.”

© Copyright Original Source

A fascinating discovery and further analysis will hopefully provide more evidence of the vessel's provenance.