Turkish Archeology Divers lifting Artefacts from a Roman 4th Century Ship in Yassiada
Visited Bodrum's Museum for Underwater Archeology in the Saint Peter Castle this morning and quickly realized that i closed my blog too early. Shoud have waited for another 24 hours. The museum shows artifacts from five different shipwrecks from Greek, Roman, Byzantine and Ottoman time. Star of the show is the 3’500 year old late bronze-age wreck which sank off the Cape Uluburun. We sailed over the site on Wednesday, 7 August or H+9.
Replica of the Uluburun Ship with 10 tons of Copper Ingots as Oxhides or round Plates
Knew already quite a bit about the Uluburun wreck but seeing the artifacts and reading about them is rather different. The museum built a full size replica and showed how the traded items were stowed in the hull. Ten tons of copper take up quite some space!
Amphora filled with Glass Beads - Baked together by 3'500 years
Did not expect glass beads, carved ivory, silver and gold jewelry and pottery on the loading list. The items came from as far as Uzbekistan (tin), the Indus Valley (ivory), Greece (pottery), Cyprus Copper) snd Phoenicia (beads). Late bronze trading happened over a distance of more than 4’000 km or 2’700 miles.
Swan carved from Indian Ivory - wonder what it was good for?
Am always intrigued by how skilful and curious our ancestors were and how quickly their innovations spread across the world. People love talking, trying new things and trading. In this respect we are not any different from our ancestors. Technology and times change. Humans remain the same.
Fine Pottery from Mycenae on the Peloponnese
Maybe we should take a note or two from these underwater findings. It is not protectionism and shielding ourselves from the outside world that develops mankind. To the contrary: open exchange and competition of ideas make the world go round and further. Time for some autocrats in the east and some wokeies in the west to pay attention? Sadly, they are too busy with themselves and do not find the time to visit the Uluburun Ship.
Admire the Beauty of the 3'500 Years-old Gold Pieces found on Board of the Uluburun Ship
Location of the Shipwreck and Origin of the Goods traded on the Uluburun
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