Shipwreck from 400 BCE to be rebuilt

REPLICA: Post Holy Land: The Ma‘agan Michael ship will sail again. The wreck of the Ma‘agan Michael ship was discovered in 1985, and excavated over three seasons in 1988 and 1989 by the Leon Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies of the University of Haifa. (Dr. Deborah Cvikel, Jerusalem Post)

The wreck of the Ma‘agan Michael ship was discovered in 1985, and excavated over three seasons in 1988 and 1989 by the Leon Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies of the University of Haifa. A large part of the wooden hull of the ship, 11.15 m long, 3.11 m wide and 1.5 m deep, survived. Because of the significance of the archaeological find, the remains were completely excavated, retrieved from the seabed, conserved, and are now on display in the Hecht Museum at the University of Haifa. The timbers of the ship and the other finds have been studied in detail, contributing significantly to our knowledge of how ancient ships were built, and life on board. The ship was 14.4 m long and had a single square sail. She was loaded with a cargo of building stones, and some of the crew's possessions and the carpenter's tools were found in the wreck. She was probably on her maiden voyage.

The late Dr. Elisha Linder, the founder of the Ma‘agan Michael ship project, had a burning desire to build a sailing replica of the ancient ship. His dream is now becoming a reality thanks to generous donations by supporters headed by Sara and Avi Arenson. The keel-laying ceremony took place in July 2014, and launching is planned for 2016.

I'm surprised that I haven't heard about this shipwreck before this, but I can find nothing in the archives. For another project that built and sailed an ancient ship replica, see my many past posts on the Good Ship Phoenicia here and links.