Archaeologists say they have discovered the world's oldest known shipwreck off the coast of Turkey, a trade vessel they date to between 4,400 and 4,700 years old — roughly the same era in which the Great Pyramid of Giza was built. The wreck, found close to the shore of Kekova Island in Antalya at a depth of just 30 metres, was about 10 metres long and carrying cargo across the Mediterranean when it went down.
"The shipwreck is a time capsule at the bottom of the sea," said Professor Hakan Öniz of Akdeniz University, who led the Mediterranean Archaeology Association expedition that found it. The ship's wooden hull did not survive, ruling out radiocarbon dating, but divers recovered three stone anchors and more than 30 ceramic storage jars, or amphorae, whose distinctive two-handled, ridged, flat-based design matches pottery of known age unearthed in Egypt and the Middle East. "Comparing the decoration techniques... we can definitely say our wreck is Early Bronze Age. This is 100%," Öniz said.
Remarkably, some of the recovered jars still contain a viscous residue from their original contents. "I looked inside and nearly fainted. I could not believe how much [residue] was visible," said Dr Karin Sowada of Macquarie University, who examined the pots after they surfaced; researchers are still working out whether the material is olive oil, wine or tree resin. The team believes the ship began its voyage somewhere on the eastern Mediterranean coast and was likely headed either to ancient Troy or to the Minoans on Crete. Turkey's culture ministry, which owns the wreck, says the recovered artefacts will go on display when the new Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology Museum opens in Antalya in the coming months.