A 2,400 year-old Greek trading ship was found virtually intact at the bottom of the Black Sea according to researchers on Tuesday, October 23.
The vessel, now determined as the oldest known shipwreck in the world, is one of the 60 shipwrecks identified by the Black Sea Maritime Archaeology Project, which includes a 17th-century Cossack raiding fleet and several Roman ships.
According to the statement of the project, researchers used specialist remote deep-water camera systems previously used for offshore oil and gas exploration to map the sea floor. With regards to the Greek trading ship, "a small part of the vessel has been carbon dated and it is confirmed as the oldest intact shipwreck known to mankind."
The ship, when it was located, is lying on its side and its mast and rudders are intact. It is also said that it dates back to 400 BC when the Black Sea was a thriving trading hub and filled with Greek colonies. It is also said that the vessle was located at a depth of more than 2,000 metres, ensuring that the ship is well-preserved even after a thousand years.
The project's main investigator, Professor Jon Adams from the University of Southampton in Southern England, said "A ship, surviving intact, from the Classical world, lying in over two kilometers of water, is something I would never have believed possible,"
"This will change our understanding of shipbuilding and seafaring in the ancient world."
