A rare 1,100-year-old sealed amphora has been recovered from a shipwreck off the coast of Kaş, Antalya, as part of Türkiye’s “Heritage for the Future Project.” The underwater excavation, led by Associate Professor Hakan Oniz of Akdeniz University and supported by a 20-member diving team from Antalya Museum, used advanced robotic technology to retrieve the artifact from a depth of 45 to 50 meters.

The amphora, brought ashore after meticulous handling, was transferred to Akdeniz University’s Underwater Archaeology Laboratory, where it was carefully opened after an hour-long precision process. Samples collected from inside are now undergoing detailed scientific analysis to identify the original contents.

Oniz suggested that the ship may have departed from Gaza around the 9th or 10th century during the Abbasid era, carrying goods such as olive oil or wine intended as gifts for Christian pilgrims or settlers.

Sealed amphoras surviving intact for over a millennium are extremely rare, making this discovery globally significant. The full analysis could take years, experts say, as multiple scientific methods will be used to verify the findings.