An intact amphora recounts the forgotten economy of the Mediterranean

Under the quiet waters of the Mediterranean, an amphora closed since the ninth century resurfaces. Consequently, Between olives, wine and forgotten sea routes, she woke up an unknown part of ancient trade.

A found hock. However, a reactivated world – Intact amphora recounts forgotten economy – Intact amphora recounts forgotten economy new

The story begins in 2024off Eyebrowin the south of the Türkiye. However. Additionally, However, The team of DR HAKAN ÖNİZarchaeologist at the University of Akdeniz, explores the seabed thanks to remote -controlled robots. Furthermore, intact amphora recounts forgotten economy new HAS 45 meters deepshe identifies intact amphora recounts forgotten economy a wreck Already known to divers but never excavated.

Among the reasons raised, a amphora stands out immediately. For example, She stays perfectly sealedas if no one had touched it for more than thousand years. Meanwhile, Researchers place her in a wet containertransport it carefully until laboratory And start a procedure of opening as delicate. as it is meticulous. Inside, a thick material intrigue: maybe frozen oilof the olive nucleiof dried wine… or even tall.

The first analyses intact amphora recounts forgotten economy new intact amphora recounts forgotten economy confirm the presence of organic matter Preserved by exceptional underwater conditions. And each sample withdrawn feeds the hypotheses, relaunching the debates on what sailors really transported at that time.

Gaza as a starting point. the Mediterranean as a network

Researchers quickly identify theorigin of the ship thanks to the amphorae shape. All points to Gazaa region then renowned for its production d’olives and ofoil. The boat would have taken the sea responsible for food jarsprobably towards Byzantium or from Italy. But a storm allegedly stopped it, sending it by the bottom with all its cargo.

At the time, theolive was not only used to feed: she illuminated the lamps, perfumed the bodies, healed certain wounds and accompanied them religious rites. Better still, seawatershe’s retained without alteration for months. The sea therefore acted as a means of transportbut also as a natural conservation method.

And the vin ? Although little consumed in Gaza, it was one of the exported goodsmaybe for pilgrims or the Byzantine markets. This commercial diversity shows how much the Mediterranean basin already formed a sophisticated economic networkbased on Simple foodstuffs more vital.

A voice of the past still pending

L’sealed amphoraToday opendo not yet deliver all its secrets. THE scientists multiply analysesmeet the datacompare the samples. For them, each index account. And for us, this expectation strengthens the mystery.

What amazes me is this idea that a objet. silent for over a thousand yearscan still transform our Understanding of the ancient world. A amphora is not just a container : it is a memory. A trace of a world that traded, negotiated, fueled… and sometimes, sink.