In 2025 divers off Adrasan, Turkey, discovered a shipwreck at least 2,000 years old whose ceramic cargo remained neatly stacked about 150 feet below the surface. Many vessels still show original designs and appear to have been coated in raw clay and packed for bulk transport. The clay and sand cushioned the stacks after the wreck, helping preserve them, and this is the first documented full‑cargo example of that packing method. Selected finds will be displayed at the Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology Museum.
Neatly Stacked After Two Millennia: Divers Find 2,000‑Year‑Old Shipwreck Off Adrasan, Turkey
In 2025 divers off Adrasan, Turkey, discovered a shipwreck at least 2,000 years old whose ceramic cargo remained neatly stacked about 150 feet below the surface. Many vessels still show original designs and appear to have been coated in raw clay and packed for bulk transport. The clay and sand cushioned the stacks after the wreck, helping preserve them, and this is the first documented full‑cargo example of that packing method. Selected finds will be displayed at the Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology Museum.
20:33, 03.11.2025Culture
2,000‑Year‑Old Shipwreck Reveals Intact Ceramic Cargo
Diving teams off the coast of Adrasan on Turkey's southern shore uncovered a shipwreck in 2025 that researchers date to at least 2,000 years old. The vessel's cargo — bowls, plates, trays and pots — was found in neat stacks roughly 150 feet (about 45 metres) below the surface, with many pieces retaining original decorations and pigments.
How it was preserved
Archaeologists found evidence that the ceramics had been deliberately stacked for bulk shipment and coated in raw clay before loading. After the ship sank, that clay layer, together with surrounding sand, acted as a cushion that reduced voids where marine life and shifting sediments would normally accelerate decay. The result is unusually well‑preserved pottery despite millennia underwater.
Context and methods
Shipwreck finds can be accidental, but many are the product of careful searches guided by historical records, sonar, LiDAR and satellite imagery; artificial intelligence increasingly helps spot subtle wreck signatures in imagery. UNESCO estimates there may be as many as three million undiscovered wrecks on the ocean floor, each a potential window into past trade and technology.
Researchers say this is the first time archaeologists have documented this specific packing method applied to a complete ceramic cargo, offering fresh insight into ancient commercial logistics and maritime trade. Selected artifacts from the Adrasan wreck will be conserved and displayed at the new Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology Museum, and parts of the site may be opened to experienced divers once documentation and conservation are complete.
Why it matters
Preserved cargoes like this let historians reconstruct manufacturing, packing and shipping techniques from antiquity and enrich our understanding of regional trade networks in the Mediterranean.