Ancient Ship Replica Returns to Sea

March 22, 2017

by: Edgar Asher

Wednesday, 22 March 2017 | The Ma’agan Michael Ship has returned to the sea.

Twenty-five hundred years after the ship sank off the coast at Ma’agan Michael, and 30 years after the shipwreck was discovered and removed from the water, a replica of the vessel has been launched. Organized by the University of Haifa and the Israel Antiquities Authority [IAA], a replica has been built over the past two years, using exactly the same materials, working methods and tools that were used some 2,500 years ago.

The ancient Ma’agan Michael Ship was discovered in 1985 by Ami Eshel, a member of Kibbutz Ma’agan Michael, some 70 meters [230 feet] from the kibbutz. The ship was removed from the sea in 1988 in a project directed by Dr. Elisha Linder, one of the founders of the Department of Maritime Civilizations at the University of Haifa. Most of the ship had been covered in sand, helping to preserve it in a remarkable condition. The keel, numerous wooden plates, 14 crossbars and the base of the mast were all preserved, offering researchers rare insights into the method used to construct the ship. In addition, the preserved tools found in the ship included the carpenter’s toolbox, a discovery that sparked the dream of building a replica using the same methods and tools used by the original shipwrights. In a complex procedure undertaken at the University of Haifa, a special preservative was inserted into the wooden base of the ship which received its own display room at the university’s Hecht Museum.

The late Professor, Yaacov Kahanov, of the Department of Maritime Civilizations at the University of Haifa did not abandon the dream of building a replica of the ship. Prof. Kahanov was a young research student when the ship was taken out of the water. Two years ago, he finally began the work of building a replica, together with Avner Hilman of the Israel Antiquities Authority, for whom the use of the ancient working methods formed part of a doctorate thesis. Together with a team of volunteers, they began the work, most of which took place at the Naval Academy in Akko.

However, the team working on the replica project soon encountered a problem. While they were familiar with the basic principle of the work—assembly using bolts and sockets—the other details were lost in the mists of time. They were unsure of the proper and most efficient way to bend the wooden beams in order to create the curved shape of the ship; the most suitable type of wood for the mast and the precise temperature to which the copper nails should be heated. In many cases the team worked on a trial and error basis until they produced the desired result.

After two year’s work, the project was completed successfully and the replica was taken to Israel shipyards and then to Kishon harbor. The ship was officially launched at the harbor according to all the proper ceremonies and has now returned to the waters where its elder sister sailed 2,500 years ago. Prof. Yaacov Kahanov, the leading spirit behind the project, passed away just before the work was completed.

Posted on March 22, 2017

Source: (Ashernet originally published this article on 20 March 2017. Time-related language has been modified to reflect our republication today. See original article at this link.)

Photo Credit: Ashernet