AN ANCIENT SHIPWRECK, found off the coast of Haifa some years ago, is in the news:

Ancient Boat Shows Israeli Maritime Life

By MATTI FRIEDMAN
The Associated Press
Wednesday, January 24, 2007; 1:04 PM

JERUSALEM -- A boat that plied the coast of the Holy Land 1,300 years ago carrying fish, carobs and olives is helping researchers better understand a little-known period in the region's history.

The boat, discovered in a coastal lagoon near the northern city of Haifa, dates from the early 8th century, not long after the rise of Islam and the Arab conquest of the Middle East. The find suggests that a long tradition of sea trade was not disrupted by the arrival of new rulers from the Arabian desert.

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