16th International Symposium on Boat & Ship Archaeology

66 16 th International Symposium on Boat & Ship Archaeology Emmanuel Nantet Laboratory for Nautical Archaeology and History Leon Recanati Institute for Maritime Studies, Department of Maritime Civilizations University of Haifa, Haifa, Israel The Caesarea shipwreck: the remains of a large early Imperial ship in the Eastern Mediterranean The Caesarea shipwreck provides significant information about large ships that have hardly been evidenced archaeologically. The find comprises one of the very few early imperial hulls that have been excavated and studied in the Eastern Med- iterranean. Lying in the northern anchorage of Caesarea, Israel, excavation of the vessel is made difficult due to sediment input, the coast’s propensity for storms, and the widespread Roman architectural debris on the shore. The first explora- tion of the wreck carried out in the 1980s was limited to a few parts of the hull. Despite the damage wrought to her since then, the extensive underwater exca- vation led by the University of Haifa in the two seasons of 2017–2018 has docu- mented the entirety of the remaining hull. The presentation will detail the hull plan, including the mortise-and-tenon fastening system, and will display the cross sections of what remains of the hold. A systematic tree species analysis of all main timbers and numerous pegs and ten- ons has been carried out. The data allows us to determine the architectural type of the ship and to rank her tonnage among the highest category, due to the thick size of her timbers and short room-and-space. Our analysis of the wreck relies on a dendrochronological analysis of all sections of the planks and frames, providing a shifting chronology subsequently fixed with 14 C analysis. Numerous literary, papyrological, and iconographic sources provide new in- formation on the large Roman vessels sailing in the Eastern Mediterranean, which includes the ship at Caesarea. However, the absence of merchandise in the hull does not allow us to determine her cargo. Nevertheless, the location of the wreck outside the prestigious harbour built by Herod highlights the economic impor- tance of the northern anchorage that has been thus far neglected.