What is probably the oldest example of an ancient wooden anchor dating to around the 7th century BC has been found by archaeologist in the port city of Urla (ancient Liman Tepe) in Turkey. The port served the ancient Greek settlement of Klazomenai but was destroyed in the 6th century BC, by an earthquake most likely. The anchor seems to have a metal-covered crown and is clearly an interesting and important find for maritime and nautical archaeology.
Results of deep-water surveys conducted by the Greek Ephorate of Underwater Antiquites and the Institue of Oceanography in Greek waters around Chios and Kythnos which led to the discovery of several ancient shipwrecks, and notably two hellenistics wrecks of particular interest, is about to be published in The International Journal of Nautical Archaeology. Apparently, the Chios wreck was located at a depth of 70 m and the Kythnos wreck was located at a depth of around 495 metres. This survey employed side-scan sonar as well sub-bottom profiling, making the survey more effective and producing interesting results. You can read the detailed report online for free (for a limited period) on the Blackwell Publishing website.
