Researchers believe that the once-sinking ship is another proof that the ancient people of the Stone Age were actually good sailors.
A team of underwater archaeologists has discovered the cargo of a Stone Age ship that sank off the coast of Capri in the Bay of Naples. According to IFLScience, scientists examined the scattered cargo and found, among other things, a large piece of obsidian.
Obsidian is a type of volcanic glass and is also known as “dragon glass.” In prehistoric times, this material was used to make knives and other tools. Scientists state that obsidian is one of the sharpest materials on Earth, and the purple-colored igneous rock occurs naturally only on some volcanic islands of Italy.
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The cargo of the ship, which had initially been submerged for a long time, was discovered by police divers at a depth of approximately 30-40 meters. The finding was examined in more detail by scientists from the Naples Metropolitan Regional Office. Scientists discovered that the sunken cargo consisted of a series of worked obsidian cores, one of which still had traces of chipping and carving on its surface.
Scientists also managed to discover a large piece of obsidian: a large sculptural core measuring 28 x 20 x 15 centimeters and weighing about 8 kilograms. However, scientists could not find any trace of a Neolithic ship carrying “dragon glass”.
Scientists will continue their work and examine the bottom in this area more carefully in the hope of finding at least some remains of the obsidian-carrying ship; perhaps they will be able to find traces of the hull or other cargo materials.
Note that recently scientists have found more and more evidence that ancient people were probably very skilled sailors. For example, stone tools previously discovered in Crete were dated to 130,000 years ago, sparking speculation that Neanderthals may have sailed to Europe from the Middle East.
Previously Focus He wrote that scientists have solved the mystery of a whaling ship that sank 207 years ago.
Source: Focus
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