Amazing Shipwrecks

A bronze sword is among the artifacts. The 18-inch-long (45-centimeter) sword is of a style dated to between 950 and 850 B.C.

The Salcombe Wreck. Between 1200 and 900 B.C., a ship sank off the coast of Devon in England. Divers have so far uncovered 300 artifacts that weigh over 185 lbs combined, including copper and tin ingots (used to make bronze), weapons, and several pieces of jewelry. The wreck is significant because of its age and because the artifacts have proven that a trade network existed during the Bronze Age.

Golden adornments called torques which date to between 1300 and 1100 B.C.

The Belitung Shipwreck. The Belitung shipwreck was the first Arabian ship to be discovered and excavated. Found off the coast of Indonesia in 1998, it has yielded the richest and largest assortment of early ninth century Tang Dynasty gold and ceramic artifacts ever found–bowls, spice jars, inkwells, funeral urns, crystals, and gilt-silver boxes. Items included pearls from the Gulf, rubies and sapphires, a gold cup, and a silver flask.

The Antikythera Treasures. In 1900, divers discovered an ancient shipwreck just off the island of Antikythera. Another expedition in 1976 recovered the most significant part of the cargo. The massive haul of artifacts from the wreck included the Antikythera mechanism. Coins and jewelry, glassware, pottery, statues, and even copper couch beds were found. One statue is a classical bronze statue made sometime from 340 to 330 B.C. named Statue of a Youth.

The Bom Jesus. The Bom Jesus was a Portuguese ship which sailed in 1533 and disappeared off the coast of West Africa. Geologists working for De Beers discovered the shipwreck buried in the beach. After uncovering several copper ingots, the mining operation was stopped and archaeologists were called in. It is the oldest shipwreck ever to be found off Africa’s coast and contained more than 22 tons of copper ingots, 6 cannons, swords, thousands of gold coins traced back to King João III, and more than 50 elephant tusks.

The Ghost Ship was accidentally discovered in 2003 by a crew searching for a Swedish plane shot down in WWII on the Baltic Sea. A full-scale expedition was launched in 2010, and researchers were able to confirm that the ship was built around 1650. It is believed to be a type of Dutch ship known as a fluyt (a sailing cargo ship). The waters of the Baltic Sea have almost no tidal movement and the low salinity means shipworms are not able to inhabit it. That’s why the Baltic houses some of the most ancient and well-preserved vessels in the world.

The Vasa. The most exquisite shipwreck ever to be found in the Baltic Sea was the Swedish royal warship, the Vasa. Built between 1626 and 1628, it sank on its maiden voyage, less than a nautical mile from the harbor. During a recovery operation in 1961, thousands of artifacts and human remains were removed. The wreck was so well-preserved that the smallest details could still be discerned on its artwork. It took more than eighteen months and 1,300 dives to salvage the Vasa. The Vasa museum is one of the most popular tourist attractions in Sweden.

Ancient gold coin discovered at Abuqir Bay in Alexandria

A gold coin from the Islamic period was discovered by an Egyptian-French mission during an underwater excavation at Abuqir Bay in Alexandria. The gold dinar dates to the reign of the Omayyad Sultan Abdel Malek Ibn Marawan (646 – 705).

Mysterious ancient gibbon found in Chinese tomb

An ape skull found in a Chinese tomb might belong to a previously unknown gibbon — one that was driven to extinction within the past two millennia. The gibbon would become the first ape known to have vanished since the last ice age ended, 12,000 years ago. The tomb near Xi’an in Shaanxi province, China, is dated between 2,200-2,300 years. It is speculated to belong Lady Xia, grandmother of China’s first emperor, Qin Shihuang.

There is much unknown about J. imperialis: there are no clues as to where it fits in the gibbon evolutionary tree, where else it lived, or for how long. China is still home to some 24 species of primate, but 80% of them are under threat.

Elvis Presley’s private plane for sale

For the past 36 years the 1962 Lockheed Jetstar has sat on a runway in Roswell, New Mexico. Among other minor problems the Jetstar reportedly lacks any engines. Online auction site IronPlanet is currently accepting online bids for The King’s plane until July 27.

Bizarre Ancient Graves in UK found

Archaeologists working at the site of a road project in Cambridgeshire, England have stumbled on a grisly find ... the bodies of two men whose legs had been chopped off at the knee. The remains are believed to date back to the late Roman or early Saxon period, or at least 1,600 years ago. The men were buried at right angles to each other, forming a T-shape, with their hacked-off limbs laid by their shoulders. Their skulls also appeared to have been smashed in. The project has uncovered an enormous ditch, about 3 meters (10 feet) wide and 1.5 meters deep, running around the site, that suggests it served as a temporary Roman military camp.

The unusual burials are part of one of the largest-ever excavations in the United Kingdom. At its height, some 250 archaeologists were working on the project, combing through 6,000 years of history contained within what looked like large and empty fields.

Ancient Ring Collection up for grabs

A collection of more than 50 ancient Roman, Greek, Viking and medieval rings, once owned by a Leicester gas engineer, are expected to raise between £80,000 and £100,000 at auction. The rings, described by an antiquities expert as among the best he has seen outside a museum, are coming up for auction later this month. The ancient haul of 54 rings was gathered in the late 1950s and early 1960s. The rings are between 2,200 and 1,800 years old and many are exceptional and extremely rare.

The Tetrarchy of Diocletian

The last two months of 284 CE marked a crisis point for the Roman Empire. With the death (probable murder) of the emperor Numerian, Diocletian was chosen by the Roman Army as his successor. Diocletian elevated the commander Maximian to the rank of Caesar. Maximian essentially functioned as co-ruler with Diocletian until he was officially granted the title of Augustus in the spring of 286. After several years of joint rule, both emperors recognized the need for further assistance. Diocletian was attempting radical reform of Roman society while Maximian was preoccupied with putting down rebellions.

Bronze coin of Maximian

In 293, Diocletian chose Galerius as his Caesar while Maximian did the same with Constantius I. Now, the Empire was basically ruled by a committee of four; the “tetrarchy” of Diocletian had been established.

Silver coin of Constantius I

Diocletian’s ambitious reforms were doomed to failure. From a collecting standpoint, the time period c.284-c.324 offers a wide array of coinage of almost 20 emperors, or would-be emperors.

Ancient Turquoise

Mask of Xiutecuhlti, god of fire

Turquoise is an opaque, blue-to-green mineral that is a hydrated phosphate of copper and aluminium. It is rare and valuable in fine grades and has been prized as a gemstone and ornamental stone for thousands of years. Turquoise was among the first gems to be mined.

Aztec turquiose

Turquoise has adorned the rulers of Ancient Egypt, the Aztecs, Persia, Mesopotamia, the Indus Valley, and in ancient China since at least the Shang Dynasty. In many cultures of the Old and New Worlds, turquoise was a holy stone, a bringer of good fortune or a talisman to ward off misfortune.

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