Imagine you pop out for a swim in the Mediterranean–no biggie since you do it all the time but this time around, something is different:
A cargo of 200 artifacts from a ship that sank 1,800 years ago off the coast of northern Israel was discovered recently. The Israel Antiquities Authority described the find as a first of its kind in the eastern Mediterranean and dated it to the Roman period.
Archeologists found Corinthian column capitals adorned with vegetal motifs, that were partially carved, and marble columns, 6 meters, (nearly 20 feet) long. The valuable architectural artifacts were likely destined for the construction of an elaborate public building – a temple or perhaps a theater.
The find was discovered by Gideon Harris, a swimmer, who saw the artifacts on his swim in the sea and alerted the IAA. “We have been aware of the existence of this shipwrecked cargo for a long time,”, Koby Sharvit, Director of underwater archaeology at IAA said. “but we didn’t know its exact whereabouts as it was covered over by sand, and we could therefore not investigate it. The recent storms must have exposed the cargo, and thanks to Gideon’s important report, we have been able to register its location and carry out preliminary archaeological investigations, which will lead to a more in-depth research project,” he said. source: https://www.ynetnews.com/travel/article/hk6qgd1hn
The find sheds light on a long-standing archaeological mystery:
The swimmer’s find, Sharvit said, has led to resolving a long-lived research issue: “Land and Sea archaeologists have long argued whether the Roman period imported architectural elements were completely worked in their lands of origin, or whether they were transported in a partially carved form, and were carved and fashioned at their site of destination. The find of this cargo resolves the debated issue, as it is evident that the architectural elements left the quarry site as basic raw material or partially worked artifacts and that they were fashioned and finished on the construction site, either by local artists and artisans or by artists who were brought to the site from other countries, similarly to specialist mosaic artists who traveled from site to site following commissioned projects,” he said. source: ibid
Not bad for a day’s swim!