Israeli Divers Uncover Two Sunken Boats Filled With Artifacts
Dating back to the Third Century.
According to UNESCO, there are roughly three million shipwrecks across the seas, with less than one percent of them having been uncovered. Students of history will be excited to hear that Israeli divers recently discovered two sunken boats off the coast of the historic port town of Caesarea.
The divers operate out of the Israeli Antiquities Authority’s Marine Archaeology Unit and estimate that the sunken ships are from the Roman and Mamluk periods, which date as far back as the Third Century. Each boat contained a treasure trove of antiquities, from hundreds of gold and silver Roman coins, to more personal possessions, such as gemstones depicting early Christian iconography.
“The ships were probably anchored nearby and were wrecked by a storm,” said Jacob Sharvit and Dror Planer, several members of the unit.
Amongst the lot, there is an intricate gold ring with a green inlaid gemstone depicting a young shepherd with a sheep on his shoulders. Archaeologists believe that the artifacts point to Caesareas as one of the early towns to have embraced Christianity.
Elsewhere, Menko cards are the subject of a new art book.
