During the 2022 survey season, a team from Akdeniz University discovered an amphora that may belong to the Early Bronze Age and a stone anchor near Güvercinada, off the coast of Antalya's Finike district. In October 2024, the amphora was retrieved from the depths. Its form and general outline resemble the typical flat-based, side-handled ceramic forms found in the Eastern Mediterranean, particularly in the Levant, during the Early Bronze Age. The wave and line decorations on the amphora were created using the incising technique and applied to the neck and shoulder sections before firing. The single-hole stone anchor bears similarities to Egyptian and Levantine stone anchors, both of which are known from the Neolithic and Bronze Ages. The distance between the amphora and the stone anchor at the find site is only four metres. The proximity of these two artefacts, which date from the same period, suggests that a shipwreck may be present. However, as no excavation has yet been carried out in the possible wreck area, it is not known whether there are any other artefacts that could provide further insight. There is also a probability that both finds were there individually and by chance. Their location along the route of Bronze Age shipwrecks in Kumluca, Gelidonya and Uluburun, to the west of Antalya, suggests that this route was used prior to their era. This is confirmed by the Early Bronze Age wreck found in Kekova in 2024, which was also on this route in Antalya. These new findings provide further information about maritime trade in the Eastern Mediterranean during the Early Bronze Age.
This article examines the extent to which the societies of Southwestern Finland were connected to Baltic Sea trade and where these connections manifested. Due to previously scarce material evidence, archaeological research has interpreted the region’s maritime trade connections as limited. Combining previous data and recent metal detectorist finds of hacksilver, weights, and scales, trade connections within the region are re-evaluated. The spatial and statistical analysis of 481 trade-related finds is conducted in relation to waterways, central places, and the only known Viking Age trading site in Finland, Kyrksundet. The results show a strong association between trade finds, waterways, and central places, where medieval churches were later established, and suggest the existence of a previously unrecognised trading site. The overall distribution of trade finds points towards the existence of a maritime and fluvial trade network operating from central places to outlands. The results demonstrate that the societies of Southwestern Finland were integrated into the Baltic Sea trade and participated directly in the silver-based exchange system.
For more than 10,000 years ( 20,000–10,000 BP), human groups repeatedly returned to the southern edge of Paleo-lake Hula in the Upper Jordan Valley to exploit aquatic resources at the Epipaleolithic site of Jordan River Dureijat (JRD). Previous research has emphasized line fishing based on bone fishhooks and line weights. Here, we document additional fishing methods revealed by the systematic use of limestone cobbles as net sinkers. The limestone assemblage from JRD includes 289 elongated limestone cobbles and 167 notched cobbles, making it the richest collection of such artefacts reported to date. Our investigation combines techno-typological analysis, stratigraphy, functional use-wear and residue analysis, and fish bone data from securely dated layers. Results demonstrate both technological continuity and innovation in fishing practices. The correspondence between net sinker abundance and the fish assemblage supports their interpretation as net fishing gear. Continuity is expressed in the repeated selection of elongated cobbles with standardized dimensions and weights, with cobble width guiding notch placement. Increasing frequencies of worked cobbles and fish in the faunal assemblage suggests an increase in fishing intensity over time. Use-wear traces, including rounding, striations and preserved wood fibers indicate cross-like binding of net sinkers from the earliest layers onward. Together, these data highlight the long-term importance of net fishing at JRD and long-term behavioral consistency, both technological conservatism and innovation, intensification and environmental adaptation in Epipaleolithic aquatic resource exploitation.
In 2024, Akdeniz University conducted a study of the Kekova region in the Demre district of Antalya, during which a shipwreck carrying Early Bronze Age amphorae was documented. The visible cargo comprises around amphorae, some of which are broken. Further remains of the shipwreck are likely to be uncovered during planned excavations at present and deeper points on the partially sandy, partially rocky seabed in 2026. The amphorae found in the wreck are generally similar to Early Bronze Age Levantine types, featuring side handles and flat bases. Following a detailed analysis of the wreck using orthophotography, two amphorae were recovered for close examination: one in 2024 and one in 2025. The technical characteristics, clay composition, and intended uses of the recovered amphorae vary. To date, no other amphora of this type has been found at the wreck site. The other amphora has characteristics similar to amphorae used commercially for transporting agricultural products such as wine, olive oil and possible others. The upper part of this amphora features two parallel lines made with a pointed tool, as well as a zigzag pattern in the middle. While the general form of the other amphorae that have not yet been recovered is similar, they are not exactly the same in terms of their technical and decorative functions. Two three-holed stone anchors and one single-holed stone anchor were found at different distances around the wreck. It is not yet known which, if any, of these anchors belong to the wreck. The three-holed stone anchors found in the wreck area resemble those seen in Bronze Age Minoan, Cypriot, Anatolian, and Levantine contexts, while the single-holed stone anchor resembles those seen on the Bronze Age Anatolian and Levantine coasts. Current information suggests that the shipwreck is from a small vessel that sank while sailing east to west during the Early Bronze Age.
South of the mouth of the Columbia River, the coastal communities centered around Nehalem Bay and the Nehalem River, fronting the Pacific Ocean represent a small but consequential maritime cultural landscape. The landscape encompasses indigenous sites dating back thousands of years, and the archaeological remains of the oldest known shipwreck on the Oregon coast, Santo Cristo de Burgos, a Manila galleon that wrecked there in late 1693 or early 1694. While the galleon, known popularly as the “Beeswax Wreck,” has garnered significant public and scholarly attention, a focused examination of this region demonstrates how land, sea and river have influenced human settlement and activity. This maritime cultural landscape encompasses a range of archaeological sites, including shipwrecks, marine infrastructure, and traditions, including an ongoing indigenous presence, and a sense of local pride invested in the unique history of this coastal community. This study argues for shifting the dialogue from a “treasure galleon” to that of an area and a region shaped by their interactions with the sea and the waters that flow into that ocean.
This contribution explores the intersection between technology and the aquatic resource economy, with a particular focus on southern Africa and how human innovation, adaptation, and social strategies have been shaped in tandem. Archaeological evidence reveals a rich tapestry of innovative fishing technologies and exploitation strategies that reflect ecological knowledge, artisanal ingenuity, and social organisation. Fishing technologies were not merely utilitarian responses to environmental conditions but became deeply embedded in the social, cognitive, and ecological arenas. We see this, for instance, in the range of aquatic imagery that features in both San religious iconography and in the rock art, highlighting the intimate entanglement of aquatic resources and fishing technologies within spiritual and ideological domains. I explore the variety of exploitation strategies ranging in time from the opportunistic collection of shellfish to the use of technology in the form of bone fish hooks, to the use of large structural fishing strategies in the form of preserved stone-walled fish traps and the implied watercrafts.
Site formation processes at underwater aircraft crash sites remain an underdeveloped area of maritime archaeology, long constrained by anecdotal data and isolated snapshots of site condition. This paper helps to address that gap through the comparative study of two submerged Second World War aircraft wrecks off Malta: a Bristol Beaufighter (T5174) and a Bristol Blenheim (Z7858). Although differing in depositional history, the two sites share broadly comparable environmental settings, depth range, and wartime context, providing a useful basis for longitudinal analysis. Using photogrammetric survey data collected between 2013 and 2025, together with cloud-to-cloud distance calculations, the study assesses structural decay, seabed change, and the displacement of wreck elements through time. The results challenge simplified assumptions regarding aircraft stability after deposition, showing that these sites remain subject to continued movement, deterioration, and reconfiguration under the influence of storm activity, seabed dynamics, and local site conditions. The findings emphasise that underwater aircraft wrecks should not be understood as reaching an immediate state of equilibrium on the seabed, but as active archaeological sites that continue to evolve long after loss. More broadly, the study demonstrates the value of re-examining legacy datasets with higher-resolution analytical tools and integrating these with repeat survey in order to improve interpretation, monitoring, and management of underwater cultural heritage.
Carmen Pérez de Andrés was the first conservator specialising in underwater cultural heritage who enabled the Museo Nacional de Arqueología Subacuática ARQVA to begin its work in the conservation of this heritage and, specifically, of waterlogged archaeological wood. The study of archival documentation and her own publications have revealed that she implemented a new way of working at the museum, understanding the particularities of the underwater environment and its impact on archaeological materials and how the presence of the conservator was essential from the site itself. To this end, she led the Waterlogged Wood Conservation Project, outfitted the museum's first conservation laboratory, developing different conservation procedures, and designing the first freeze-dryer in Spain in 1987 when this equipment had not previously been applied to underwater cultural heritage conservation. The recent access to the underwater environment has prompted an increase in archaeological materials. Organic materials, specifically wood, have been recovered from underwater sites to a greater extent than from terrestrial sites, where they rarely survive. This pioneering woman has been forgotten, and this article aims to recover her legacy and highlight her value since it marks the beginning of waterlogged wood conservation at the museum.
Spanish cultural heritage continues to play a role in social, cultural, and political developments in Micronesia and can contribute to a broader understanding of Indigenous and Spanish histories in the Pacific. Thus, Spanish cultural heritage should be appropriately identified and incorporated into a cultural heritage management and research framework for the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands (CNMI). Unfortunately, this is not the case, and this heritage is long overdue for serious investigation and research in the CNMI. This paper describes a project related to the potential for research on Spanish cultural heritage on land and underwater in the CNMI. The project aimed at facilitating the process of documenting Spanish cultural heritage by identifying known and potential heritage recorded in disparate sources such as grey literature, primary and secondary historical sources, archive and museum holdings, conversations with heritage practitioners, and oral histories. The methodology used for the survey included a thematic assessment framework whereby the known and potential Spanish cultural heritage was categorized into research themes. One theme “Maritime Spheres” was expanded to include a review of the Manila galleon trade, and the shipwrecks located in the CNMI resulting from this long-distance route. The history of the galleons, their contemporary salvage, their modern salvage, and their potential for future research are outlined. It is hoped that this paper will contribute to the growing knowledge of this significant period of history in the Mariana Islands and assist with evaluating the significance of Spanish cultural heritage for research and management purposes in the CNMI.
Logboats (monoxyls) dominate the early medieval watercraft records of the southern Baltic and Central European river basins. Within this broad corpus, a small number of unusually long dugout canoes (Circa [c.] 8–10 m [m]) from Ostrów Lednicki and Mikulčice share several recurring morphological traits and comparable depositional settings. This article examines whether these similarities justify treating them as a provisional comparative subgroup rather than as isolated large dugouts. The analysis focuses on the best-documented examples from Poland and the Czech Republic. It considers hull proportions, bow and stern form, the presence and arrangement of transverse ridges, wood species, chronology, and archaeological context. The comparison shows repeated features, including elongated proportions, bow arrangements suitable for fastening or mooring, frequent transverse ridges, and stern overhangs. However, the sample remains small and unevenly documented, and some of these similarities may reflect convergent hydrodynamic or practical solutions rather than a distinct boatbuilding tradition. The repeated association of the best-preserved examples with major bridge contexts is noteworthy, but it does not, in itself, prove a specialized engineering function. Instead, it suggests a range of possible uses related to transport, logistics, and infrastructure, while leaving room for other interpretations. The article, therefore, argues not for a formal typology but for the heuristic value of recognizing a small cluster of long monoxyls that merits further comparative study. Future progress depends on enlarged samples, standardizing metric recordings, improved dating, and the integration of use-wear, 3D, and experimental analyses.
This study systematically analyzes Chinese export ceramics (7th–13th centuries) excavated in Southeast Asia, South Asia, and the Islamic World, as well as from shipwrecks in Chinese and Southeast Asian waters. Three peaks in export volume are identified during this period (9th, 11th, 13th centuries), dominated respectively by Changsha kiln, Southern China kilns (primarily Yue kiln celadon), and Longquan kiln. The three peaks in Chinese ceramic exports were marked by an evolution in the typology and production sites of the wares, and also corresponded with key advancements in navigational technology, a shift in trade patterns from direct shipping to transshipment, the maturation of long-distance maritime routes, and a broadening of the consumer base from elites to commoners. These patterns reflect the dynamics and development of the maritime trade mechanism.
This article examines the Batanghari River as an integral component of Southeast Asia’s maritime world by situating it within the framework of the maritime cultural landscape and fluvial maritime systems. Rather than adopting coast-focused interpretations of maritime history, the study argues that inland rivers functioned as active maritime spaces that structured mobility, trade, settlement, and cultural practices across long temporal spans. Using an integrative methodology that combines archaeological evidence with historical sources, the research traces the role of the Batanghari River from the early Srivijaya period through the Malay polities, colonial intervention, and post-independence transformations. Archaeological data, including river-oriented settlement patterns, temple complexes, canal systems, port installations, boat remains, and imported ceramics, demonstrate that the Batanghari River was not merely a transportation corridor. Instead, it functioned as a central organizing axis within an inland maritime system that connected resource-rich interior regions with the Strait of Malacca and wider global trade networks. Historical records further indicate that shifts in political economy, colonial trade monopolies, and infrastructural reconfigurations contributed to the gradual decline of river-based maritime culture and to the displacement of riverine communities. By repositioning the Batanghari River as a core maritime arena rather than a marginal inland space, this study contributes to broader debates in maritime archaeology and Southeast Asian history by highlighting the critical role of rivers in shaping long term maritime connectivity, cultural identity, and socioeconomic transformation.
The Persian Gulf has long served as a critical gateway within the maritime Silk Road, yet the structural relationships among its Islamic-period ports remain insufficiently examined. This study reconstructs the commercial and cultural networks of six key settlements—Siraf, Sohar, Julfar, Kush, Bilad al-Qadim, and Kish—by integrating archaeological ceramic assemblages with historical sources and quantitative analysis. Ceramic data from major excavations and regional typological studies were systematically standardized according to provenance categories and chronological phases. Using Kendall’s rank correlation coefficient, the study evaluates inter-port synchrony, trade intensity, and shifts in regional economic hierarchies between the second and eighth centuries Anno Hegirae (AH) (8th–fourteenth centuries Current Era [CE]). The results reveal distinct temporal clusters: an early Islamic network centered on Siraf, Sohar, and Kush; a middle-phase axis dominated by Kish and Bilad al-Qadim; and a later commercial realignment characterized by the rise of Julfar. Kish emerges as a major redistribution hub for luxury commodities during the 6th–seventh centuries AH (12th–thirteenth centuries CE), while Siraf and Sohar exhibit strong alignment during the Abbasid commercial zenith. The findings demonstrate how ceramic provenance patterns capture broader geopolitical and economic transitions in the western Indian Ocean. By combining comparative typology with statistical modelling, this research offers a replicable framework for analyzing inter-port connectivity and contributes new insights into the dynamics of medieval Persian Gulf trade networks.
The debate over the architectural form of the ancient Kedah River jetty has continued for over a century, with the aim of identifying and classifying it accurately. To record the primary data, several methodologies were applied, including surveys, mapping, excavation, and analysis at the SB1H site, Sungai Batu Archaeological Complex, until the interpretation was presented. The results of the study successfully completed the data related to the architecture, raw materials, engineering, and chronometric dating of the ancient Kedah River jetty. The data is very valuable because it is the first recorded for the ancient Kedah Kingdom, and its interpretation has further strengthened the role of ancient Kedah as an entrepôt port in the Southeast Asian region since Before Christ (BC).
