A 1,200-year-old shipwreck loaded with cargo from across the Mediterranean found off the coast of Israel shows that Western traders continued to call at ports there even after the Muslim conquest of the Holy Land.
Dating back to the 7th or 8th century AD, the shipwreck is evidence that trade with the rest of the Mediterranean continued despite the religious divide. Now archaeologists are studying the merchant ship made of pine and walnut wood, which transported containers of delicacies from distant lands.
The ship had loaded goods from several places in the Mediterranean, explains project manager Deborah Cvikel of the University of Haifa: “We found fish sauce, grapes or raisins – that is still unclear – figs and different types of olives. A cross section of Mediterranean food. Well preserved and well preserved.”
The artifacts aboard the 25-meter ship would show it docked in Cyprus, Egypt, possibly Turkey and perhaps even the North African coast, the researchers said.
Source: Krone
