In brief
A team of divers and archaeologists has discovered the world’s oldest known shipwreck off the coast of Kekova Island, Turkey. Dating between 4,400 and 4,700 years old, the wreck sits 30 metres below sea level and preserves ceramic cargo still holding residue of its original contents. The find provides the first intact evidence of Mediterranean trade between the early Bronze Age societies of the Eastern coast, Troy, and Crete. The discovery tops the list of ancient wrecks and will soon be displayed at the new Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology Museum in Antalya.
Unveiling the Oldest Shipwreck on the Mediterranean
A diver-led expedition from the Mediterranean Archaeology Association has put the world on a new maritime timeline by locating the most ancient shipwreck ever found. The wreck lies 30 metres off Kekova Island, in Antalya Province, Turkey, and has been dated to between 4,400 and 4,700 years ago, placing it squarely in the Early Bronze Age and contemporaneous with the construction of the Great Pyramid.
While the wooden hull has long since decomposed, the cargo remained, consisting of more than 30 amphorae laden with a viscous, glossy residue that scientists suspect could be olive oil, wine or tree resins. The amphorae display a distinctive design—two handles, a middle ridge and a flat base—that matches pottery from Egypt and the wider Middle East of the same age, confirming the vessel’s antiquity.
Professor Hakan Öniz of Akdeniz University, who led the dive, described the wreck as “a time capsule at the bottom of the sea.” He added that the ship was roughly 10 metres long, a trade vessel that most likely set out from the eastern Mediterranean coast on a course destined for the ancient city of Troy or the Minoan peoples on Crete.
The recovered amphorae are currently being conserved on a research ship, with Dr. Karin Sowada of Macquarie University noting that the residues inside the pots were astonishingly well preserved after five millennia underwater. “It could be olive oil, wine, or tree resin,” she said, adding that the jars might have been reused after their initial transport.
The wreck’s discovery, which tops the list of the world’s oldest shipwrecks, replaces the former record held by a 4,200-year-old find off Dokos, Greece. It underscores the perilous nature of ancient maritime trade, especially around the currents of Kekova Island, where many wrecks remain scattered on the sea floor.
According to Turkish Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy, the artefacts will soon be displayed in the new Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology Museum in Antalya.
