The Tantura A Shipwreck

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Plan of the Tantura A shipwreck and adjacent finds in Trench VI.   (slide# K334) Drawing: P. Sibella.

The Tantura A shipwreck. View from the center of the preserved hull towards the northwest. (slide# K298) Photo: S. Wachsmann.

View from the center of the preserved hull towards the southeast. (slide# K297) Photo: S. Wachsmann.

Team members clean the hull of the Tantura A shipwreck at the time of its discovery, in 1994. Note that the frames are missing  from the hull planking in the foreground. (slide# K338) Photo: S. Wachsmann

The southeastern extremity of Tantura A's keel was found resting on a roughly circular stone anchor, an interesting example of stratigraphy under the seabed at Tantura Lagoon. (slide# K303) Photo: S. Wachsmann

Charring is clearly visible on these planks adjacent to the post at the northwestern extremity of Tantura A. (slide# K340) Photo: S. Wachsmann

The charring on Tantura A continued beneath the frame stations near the post, indicating that the burn marks are not the result of a haphazard blaze, but rather that the planks were charred prior to their attachment to the frames.  The charring was localized to the extremities of the strakes.  These considerations led  J.R. Steffy to conclude that the burn marks are the result of "char-bending," a process in which water-soaked planks are bent to shape as they are heated over a fire.   Tantura A is the earliest recorded evidence for this process in planked-hull ship construction. (slide# K341) Photo: S. Wachsmann

At  the southeast, the keel of Tantura A had been snapped like a matchstick, indicating that the hull had broken on the rocks while entering the cove during a storm. (slide# K112) Photo: S. Wachsmann

The scarf in Tantura A's keel. View toward the northeast. (slide# K118)

The keel of Tantura A was found to be resting upon an upside-down stone stock used to trip a wooden anchor.  The stock predates the hull by about a millenium.(slide# K269) Photo: S. Wachsmann

The stone anchor stock. (slide# K342) Photo: S. Wachsmann

Detail of Tantura A's northwestern extremity. (slide# K175)

Team members remove the sole-surviving portion of Tanura A's northern garboard strake for examination on land.  The garboard strake was subsequently returned to the site. (slide# 206) Photo: S. Wachsmann

Byzantine-period bag-shaped amphora found south of Tantura A, and   possibly  part of its original cargo. (slide# K313)

Part of a Byzantine-period bag-shaped jar overlying Tantura A. (slide# K055)

Byzantine-period sherds were found "glued" to the hull planking with resin, conclusive archaeological proof of Tantura A's Byzantine date. (slide# K295) Photo: S. Wachsmann

Amphora lid and piece of marble found next to Tantura A. (slide# K110) Photo: S. Wachsmann