Ancient Shipwreck Cargo Sheds Light on Iron Age Trade And a Lost Mediterranean Seaport
The shipwrecks of ancient times opened a page of history that tells us how different cultures collaborated. A recently discovered treasure trove of sunken cargo in the Mediterranean, for example, tells a story of centuries of maritime trade between civilizations.
A study published earlier this year in Antiquity presented a trio of commodity clusters found in Dor Lagoon on Israel’s Carmel coast, signifying evidence of Iron Age trade that had previously been lost to time. The cargo – which contained items such as storage jars and iron smelting products – showed researchers how trade had the power to connect several ancient states.
Learn more: Preserved sunken ship found in shipwreck alley after 120 years
Early Iron Age cargo wrecks
Locus 23.006 L2 hardware. a) Iron ingots [left scale 20 cm, right scale 10 cm]; b) base of the amphora with basket handle with resin [scale 10 cm]; c) amphora handles with basket handles [scale 10 cm]; d) Location. 23.007 amphora base with basket handle with grape seeds [left scale 20 cm, top scale 5 cm]
(Image courtesy of Jonathan Gottlieb, Yoav Bornstein and Marko Runjajic)
The study describes the evidence as the earliest Iron Age ship cargo discovered at Tel Dor, a coastal archaeological site in modern Israel that was once a bustling port town. Dor originated around 2000 BCE, during the Middle Bronze Age, and eventually developed into a crucial seaport.
However, as civilizations were overthrown by famines and invasions during the enigmatic Late Bronze Age Collapse around 1200 BCE, trade reached a virtual standstill.
But that wasn’t the end of Dor. Although the city was destroyed several times, it would later rebound during the Iron Age (1200 to 550 BCE). Over the years, Dor has gone through several phases marked by links with several civilizations.
Each of the three ship cargoes excavated in Dor Lagoon, adjacent to the ancient port, contains key evidence of stages of Dor’s history. Walking through them all, it becomes clear how the city evolved throughout the Iron Age.
Cargo on the wreck
Chronologically, the earliest cargo of the set is Dor M, which dates to the 11th century BCE, according to a statement from the study. This collection contained storage jars, as well as an anchor bearing a Cypro-Minoan inscription; The Cypro-Minoan group of undeciphered scripts was in use on the island of Cyprus and neighboring areas during the Late Bronze Age and Early Iron Age, possibly used for administrative, religious and commercial purposes.
Researchers involved in the study also say that these elements likely indicate Dor’s trade relations with Egypt and Cyprus. The results of Dor M correspond to the Wenamun Reporta literary work from around 1000 BCE that describes maritime voyages to the Levant (including Dor).
The next cargo, Dor L1, contained Phoenician-style jars and thin-walled bowls dating from the late 9th to early 8th centuries BCE. Unlike the old Dor M, this one did not contain any objects that could indicate trade with Egypt or Cyprus.
During this stage of the Iron Age, trade networks expanded across the Mediterranean and Phoenician cultural influence began to reach its peak. The Phoenicians, who inhabited city-states along the eastern coast of the Mediterranean, controlled Dor for a significant period of time.
The port eventually came under the control of the Kingdom of Israel, at a time when imports to the city were reaching a low point. Although Dor seems to lose some of its influence during this period, researchers say that the Phoenician-style jars confirm that maritime activity still continued.
Metal trade in the Iron Age
The last of the three cargoes, Dor L2, contained objects from the late 7th or early 6th century BCE. Besides Cypriot-style basket handle amphorae (a type of pot with a narrow neck and elongated body), Dor L2 contained another distinct find that was not present in the previous two collections: iron flowers. These are porous masses of metallic iron and slag produced by the smelting of iron ore.
At this time, maritime trade was flourishing while Dor was ruled by the Babylonian or Assyrian empires. The presence of iron blooms shows that metal trading had probably begun to become commonplace.
These three shipwreck cargoes may only tell a fraction of Dor’s story. Researchers say only 25 percent of the sandbar where the objects were found has been excavated. A host of additional artifacts, including possible sections of a ship’s hull, may still be hidden there.
Learn more: What ancient teeth from a cave can tell us about the Bronze Age collapse
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