Divers explore the 2,300-year-old Shipwreck off Egypt

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A 2,300-year-old merchant shipwreck has been found off Egypt’s north coast in the Mediterranean Sea. The wreckage is centred on a submerged reef, implying that the ship sunk after colliding with the rocks.

A diver explores the El-Alamein wreck site (Ministry of Tourism & Antiquities)

During a regular assessment, an engineer from a marine-survey business discovered the wreckage and notified the country’s Supreme Council for Archaeology, which deployed a scientific dive team to investigate the old wreck’s historical and archaeological importance.

The Egyptian Archaeological Mission studied the amphora-laden wreck, which lies around 650m out from the village of El-Alamein, according to Egypt’s Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities, which today revealed the finding. It was dated to the third century BC.

The cargo includes a number of distinctively shaped wine jars (Ministry of Tourism & Antiquities)

Assortment of earthenware on the ancient wreck (Ministry of Tourism & Antiquities)

Apart from Alexandria, Egypt’s north coast had various trade ports during the time, according to Dr Mustafa Waziri, secretary-general of the Supreme Council for Archaeology. These ports serviced ships passing between Egypt, North Africa, and southern Europe, mostly bringing wine, olives, and grain.

He went on to say that the finding provided additional proof of Egypt’s commercial, economic, and tourist position, as well as the El-Alamein region’s. The village is located around 115 kilometers west of Alexandria.

The wine amphoras appear to have originated in Rhodes (Ministry of Tourism & Antiquities)

The ship’s timbers had been discovered, as well as hundreds of ceramic artefacts, including a considerable number of amphoras meant to hold wine. According to the chairman of the Supreme Council’s Egyptian Archaeological Sector, Dr. Ayman Ashmawy, their style suggested that they originated on the Greek island of Rhodes.

The archaeologists have already finished 3D photogrammetry recording of the site and are debating techniques for storing, keeping, and conserving the many findings before beginning on excavations to determine “what secrets the ship has hidden.”

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