Canaanite Shipwreck Believed to be Earliest in the World Discovered by Energy Company
Latest News
Reported by Haaretz:
An energy company surveying the Mediterranean seafloor has discovered the earliest shipwreck ever found in the deep sea anywhere in the world: a Canaanite merchant vessel that sank 3,400 to 3,300 years ago, the Israel Antiquities Authority revealed on Thursday. Moreover, it designed and sent down a specially kitted robot to retrieve samples.
The wreck was found a year ago at a depth of almost two kilometers (1.2 miles), 90 kilometers (55 miles) off the Israeli coast, in the middle of the sea – which was startling in and of itself. Either it was very lost or the ancients had navigational skills we weren't aware of, the IAA team says.
While the seafloors of the world are littered with shipwrecks, this is the earliest found in the deep sea from that time. In fact, until now we hadn't been confident the ancients around the Mediterranean intentionally crossed the sea at all, as opposed to sailing along the coasts.
You can read more here.