Dramatic. World-class. Sensational. Beyond imagining.
These words aren’t extolling the latest concert, book, or movie. They’re describing a sunken boat and a trove of ancient jars.
Energean is a company that operates several deep-sea natural gas fields in Israel’s territorial waters. The company uses a submersible robot to survey and map the seabed.
Deep off Israel’s northern coast, an Energean robot scoured the murky Mediterranean floor. Suddenly, workers monitoring the ’bot noticed something unusual—“a large pile of jugs” at the bottom of the sea.
The ’bot had encountered a 39- to 45-foot-long wooden ship buried in the mud. Scattered around and on top of the ship lay hundreds of ancient amphorae (clay jars).
Both boat and cargo were fully intact, according to the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA). Officials believe the vessel sank either in a storm or after coming under attack by pirates. Jacob Sharvit, head of the IAA marine unit, says, “Time has frozen [the boat] since the moment of disaster.”
Energean cooperated with the IAA to carefully retrieve two of the jugs for further study. The IAA says the jugs were Canaanite and were likely used for carrying oil, wine, or fruit.
Bible readers recognize the Canaanites as descendants of Noah. (Genesis 9:20-25) The Canaanites lived in lands bordering the eastern Mediterranean. Today, the area is called the Southern Levant. This region includes Israel, Jordan, and the Palestinian territories.
The deep-sea find surprised IAA historians. They had thought Bronze Age (3330 B.C.-1200 B.C.) ships kept the shoreline in view to navigate. But the discovery 55 miles off the coast reveals early seafarers were excellent navigators, with skills not previously understood.
The 3,300-year-old vessel is the oldest known example of a ship sailing far from land, the IAA states.
“The discovery of this boat now changes our entire understanding of ancient mariner abilities,” Sharvit says. He adds that two ships from the same era had been discovered previously. But both were close to shore.
Sharvit believes the newly discovered boat’s sailors probably used the Sun and the stars to navigate.
The find is important in another way. The ship sank about 55 miles offshore. It lies at a depth of over a mile. Scholars say that likely means the ship has been undisturbed by waves, currents, or humans for centuries. Its intact condition offers great research potential.
Scientists do hope to conduct further research on the boat. But for now, the ship—minus two jugs—remains at the bottom of the sea.
Why? Preconceived ideas about the past should be held with humility, as ongoing discoveries can bring new understanding about past practices.
