1,400-year-old shipwreck once ‘invaded’ by rats

The rat skeletons found in the wreck of the Ma’gan Michael B off the Mediterranean coast of Israel provide the team at the University of Haifa with valuable information about the past, Business Insider reported on April 17. Ma’gan Michael B was a 25 m long merchant ship that existed from 648 to 740. The ship sank about 70 m off the coast of Israel.

Rat bones are the only and oldest direct evidence of large numbers of rats raging on ancient ships in the Mediterranean, according to animal archaeologist Sierra Harding. Some of them are black rats, she said, which followed merchants who traveled from South Asia and India to the Middle East more than 2,000 years ago.

Analyzing dental morphology, the team found that other rats on board were also non-native. Preliminary research suggests they may have come from Tunisia or Corsica in the central Mediterranean.

“If it is true that some rats come from as far away as the islands in the central Mediterranean, then this means that communication, transportation, exchange and trade, which was bustling during the this,” Harding said.

Scientists also found many well-preserved artifacts under the wreck, helping to better portray the life on the ancient merchant ship. According to a 2020 report by a team of experts at the University of Haifa, Ma’gan Michael B contains the largest set of maritime cargo including Byzantine and Classical Islamic pottery ever discovered off the coast of Israel. . Among the ship’s cargo were walnuts from Turkey and fish sauce from the Sea of ​​Galilee.

The ship’s crew is very diverse. The team confirmed this when they found Christian crosses, Islamic blessings and Greek and Arabic letters engraved on the side of the ship. They found no human remains under the wreck, suggesting the crew made it ashore when the ship ran aground a short distance from shore.

Thu Thao (According to Business Insider)