No. 133

Black Sea shipwreck

Where

Off Bulgaria

Built by

Ancient Greek traders

Era

about 400 BCE

Known for

The oldest known intact shipwreck, its mast still standing.

How it went under

Oxygen-free deep water kept it whole.

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Background

Ancient Black Sea shipwrecks found in the Black Sea date to antiquity. In 1976, Willard Bascom suggested that the deep, anoxic waters of the Black Sea might have preserved ships from antiquity since typical wood-devouring organisms could not survive there. At a depth of 150m, the Black Sea contains insufficient oxygen to support most familiar biological life forms.

Text from Wikipedia, licensed CC BY-SA 4.0.