Deepest Wreck

Archaeological Institute of America ^ | March/April 2001 | Brett A. Phaneuf, Thomas K. Dettweiler, and Thomas Bethge

[Bob Ireland]

***challenging the long-held assumption that ancient sailors lacked the navigational skills to sail large distances across open water, and were instead restricted to following the coastline during their voyages***

Thanks for this reminder of challenging the traditional contemporary view.

This Wiki map of Phoenician trade routes seems to hint at at least one seaward route between Lepcis and Sicily.

[Tallguy]

There would have been tremendous incentives for sailing direct over open water rather than hugging the shoreline. First, fewer underwater obstacles (reefs & such) on which to run aground. Also, piracy.

[BenLurkin]

At about the same time, the Greeks were founding colonies around the northern Mediterranean, at least as far west as Marseille

[Bob Ireland]

***the Greeks were founding colonies around the northern Mediterranean, at least as far west as Marseille***

True; the issue I had raised with SunkenCiv recently was whether trans-Atlantic commerce might have predated Columbus - and the Vikings. This posting highlighted the fact that a Greek ship was found in open seas contradicting the conventional view that shipping in the Bronze Age followed the sea coasts since they had no navigational skills.

Nothing determinative here but I remain receptive to the idea of early tans-Atlantic commerce - e.g. the source of tin (for Old World bronze). {see James Bailey, The God Kings and Titans}

[SunkenCiv]

They got around.

http://www.freerepublic.com/tag/pytheas/index

[SunkenCiv]

/bingo

Most of the histories are written by landlubbers.

[SunkenCiv]

It's safe to say that ancient skippers basically *never* hugged the coastlines.

[Bob Ireland]

***It's safe to say that ancient skippers basically *never* hugged the coastlines***

:^) Didn't the Vikings possibly use a crystal or something to navigate?

[SamAdams76]

This is what Donald and Melania Trump looked like in 2004, when this post was first made.

These days, they are a little older, a lot wiser and very much more powerful.

[sport]

What a lady in every sense of the word.” And Donald Trump is the man that matches the lady. A excellent match.

I am feeling mean now. I would like to cut that picture out and send it to Bill Clinton. Let him see who President Trump wakes up by every morning versus what he has.

[SunkenCiv]

Yup, it's thought that they did. It's around here somewhere, I'm sure of it [rustling noise] ... .

• Crystals 'helped Viking sailors' (For Viking fans....and others, of course). [2007]
• How Vikings May Have Navigated On Cloudy Days (More) [2007]
• Did Vikings navigate by polarized light? [2011]
• Icelandic rocks could have steered Vikings [2011]
• Researchers: We may have found a fabled sunstone (Update) [2013]
• Researchers suggest Vikings used crystals with sun compass to steer at night [2014]
• Incised stone sun discs found during Danish island excavations [2015, not really about this]
• Mythical Viking Sunstones Could Have Worked [2018]

[SunkenCiv]

They've aged better than I have. :^)

[Bob Ireland]

***Didn't the Vikings possibly use a crystal or something to navigate?
Yup, it's thought that they did. It's around here somewhere, I'm sure of it [rustling noise]***

My goodness; you are a virtual Library of Alexandria! (Beware of Caesar - and Romans!)