On Saturday, the Egyptian authorities found a new archaeological treasure, which is the remains of a sunken ship and a number of utensils dating back to the third century BC, off the coast of the city of El Alamein in Marsa Matrouh, while a local official revealed to “Sky News Arabia” that experts are working on another discovery off the coast of Ras al-Hikma. .
The Egyptian Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said that the treasure, which was found on Saturday, is located in one of the sunken sites in the Mediterranean Sea, about 650 meters from the shore of the El Alamein area.
Treasure details
Regarding the details of the treasure, the Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said:
* Remains of the sunken ship’s wood were found, and hundreds of pottery artifacts, including a large number of jars (amphoras) imported from the island of Rhodes, Greece, which were used in the past to store and transport wine.
* The jars were found resting on a sunken island next to the ship, which confirms that the reason for the sinking of the ship during its commercial voyage is likely to be the impact of its bottom on the island at the bottom of the sea.
* This archaeological site was reached through the engineer, Hussein Mosharafa, owner of one of the marine survey companies, as he saw the remains of the sunken ship while his company was conducting survey work in this area, so he notified the Supreme Council of Antiquities.
* An archaeological scientific team from the Central Department of Submerged Antiquities headed to the El Alamein area and began diving and archaeological survey work to explore the site and determine its historical and archaeological importance.
* Archaeological documentation of the finds has been completed using the three-dimensional imaging technique (Photogrammetry), and scenarios for dealing with archaeological finds, preserving them, and excavating them from the site are currently being studied.
* The studies conducted by the work team indicate that the ship that was found is a merchant ship, dating back to the third century BC, which shows the course of trade between Egypt and the Mediterranean countries at that time.
The Ministry of Tourism and Antiquities said that it is known that the northern coast included about 30 villages, cities, and ports during the Greek and Roman eras, the most important of which are the ports of Marsa Matrouh, Dabaa, and Marina El Alamein, and those ports were stations on the way of ships coming from North Africa and southern Europe to Alexandria. .
She explained that food products such as wine, olives, and grains were exported from the ports of the northern coast to North Africa, southern Europe, and the eastern Mediterranean.
The importance of the El Alamein treasure
On the importance of the archaeological treasure discovered in El Alamein, the head of the Central Department of Sunken Antiquities at the Egyptian Ministry of Antiquities, Islam Selim, spoke to Sky News Arabia, saying:
* This discovery confirms Egypt’s historical position in terms of trade between East and West, and also confirms that the region is rich in great archaeological treasures that will be uncovered successively.
* This discovery is older than the effects left by the World War because it dates back to the third century BC, specifically the Greek era, as this region in the past included 30 cities, villages and ports and was famous for exporting oils and wines.
* In addition to this discovery, and to prove that this area contains a great history, we received news from an amateur diver that he had seen a body suspected of its antiquity drowned in the sea near the Ras Al-Hikma area adjacent to Al-Alamein, and we are in the process of conducting the necessary studies in the region to reveal what this body is, and in Most will lead to an important treasure.
* These discoveries came after preliminary studies and the expansion of marine excavation work is sure to lead to even greater discoveries.
* We have monitored many evidences confirming the existence of many wrecks of ships dating back to the Second World War sunken in the sea in the El Alamein region, and most of the fishermen and amateur divers have guided about such things in the region.
* Such underwater archaeological and cultural discoveries are kept in their places according to the UNESCO agreement that Egypt signed in 2001, and this is better for preserving these antiquities and more in terms of the economic feasibility of turning them into tourist attractions.
* According to scientific studies, only light precious discoveries are transferred from the seabed to private museums, while large-scale discoveries such as the remains of ships remain in their places.
2023-08-05 22:11:58
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