A 4,700-year-old shipwreck discovered off the coast of Turkey near the island of Kekova has been confirmed as the oldest...

A 4,700-year-old shipwreck discovered off the coast of Turkey near the island of Kekova has been confirmed as the oldest known wreck in the world, according to archaeologists cited by the BBC. The find predates the previous record holder by roughly 500 years, a wreck found near the Greek island of Dokos that dates back approximately 4,200 years. The wooden hull of the ancient vessel has not survived, but divers recovered more than 30 ceramic storage jars known as amphorae, along with three large stone anchors, from a depth of just 30 meters on an underwater slope. Some of the jars were found completely intact and still contained residue of a thick, glossy substance inside. Professor Hakan Oniz of Akdeniz University in Turkey led the expedition for the Mediterranean Archaeological Association. He put the shipwreck at somewhere between 4,400 and 4,700 years old, placing it in the Early Bronze Age, roughly contemporaneous with the construction of the Great Pyramid at Giza. He said the team is "100 percent certain" of the dating, based on the distinctive shape and decoration of the amphorae, which match vessels excavated in Egypt and the Middle East from the same period. Dr. Karin Sovanda from Macquarie University in Australia examined the jars and said she nearly fainted when she looked inside one. The quantity of organic residue still visible was far beyond what she expected, well beyond a few stains. Researchers are now working to identify the cargo, with olive oil, wine, and tree resins among the leading candidates. Archaeologists estimate the ship was about 10 meters long and was used as a trading vessel crossing the eastern Mediterranean. Its likely origin was the eastern Mediterranean coast, and it may have been heading toward ancient Troy in northwestern Turkey or toward Minoan Crete. The Kekova region is known for strong currents and winds that have claimed hundreds of ships over the centuries. #Archaeology #AncientHistory #Mediterranean