Black Assarca shipwreck

The Black Assarca shipwreck was first discovered by tourists in 1995, at Black Assarca Island, Eritrea. The wreck was surveyed in 1995 and partially excavated in 1997 by the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, under the auspices of the Ministry of Marine Resources of Eritrea.

Finds

The 1997 excavation team, headed by Ralph K. Pedersen, discovered various ceramics of Near Eastern/Mediterranean origin, including amphoras of a type known as "Ayla-Axum Amphoras". These long and conical "carrot shaped" amphoras, decorated with corrugations, or rilling, have been found previously at such sites as: Aksum, the capital of the Aksumite Kingdom; Metara; Adulis, the Aksumite port city located on the west side of Zula Bay; Berenike, the Ptolemaic harbor in Egypt; and Aqaba, Jordan. Based on the finds at these sites, the Black Assarca ceramics are thought to date from around the 5th or 6th century, with the wreck possibly dating from the early 7th century.

Other finds include a counterbalance weight for a steelyard, a piece of glass, and two other amphora types: one a round amphora, and the other a wider version of the conical type. Both of these types share stylistic characteristics with the Ayla-Axum vessels. No hull remains were found in the 1997 excavation season.

References

• "The Byzantine-Aksumite Period Shipwreck at Black Assarca Island, Eritrea". Ralph Pedersen's Nautical Archaeology. Retrieved 15 March 2013.
• Pedersen, Ralph K. (Summer–Fall 2000). "Under the Erythraean Sea: The Shipwreck at Assarca Island, Eritrea". INA Quarterly 27 (2/3): 3–13. Archived from the original on 11 July 2007. 
• Pedersen, Ralph K. (2008). "The Byzantine Aksumite Period Shipwreck at Black Assarca Island, Eritrea". Azania (British Institute in Eastern Africa) 43: 77–94. doi:10.1080/00672700809480460. www.academia.edu/329268/The_Byzantine-Aksumite_Period_Shipwreck_at_Black_Assarca_Island_Eritrea