Early Bronze Age shipwreck found near Kekova

Archaeologists have uncovered an Early Bronze Age shipwreck near Kekova Island off Turkey’s Mediterranean coast, with pottery suggesting it may date to between 4,400 and 4,700 years ago. Researchers say the wreck could be among the oldest known, though its precise age and original cargo have not been established. The discovery was made during underwater excavations near the island in Antalya province. More than 30 ceramic storage vessels and three large stone anchors were found about 30 metres below the surface, according to the reported excavation findings. The ship’s wooden structure has not survived, leaving pottery as the main evidence used to estimate its age. Researchers compared the vessels’ shapes and decoration with similar ceramics found in Egypt and elsewhere in the eastern Mediterranean. The comparison supports an Early Bronze Age dating, but the absence of wood means the wreck could not be dated by radiocarbon analysis. The reported age range is broad, rather than a precise date. Turkey’s Culture and Tourism Minister Mehmet Nuri Ersoy said analysis of the clay suggests the amphorae may have been made in workshops in the Jordan Valley.