Istanbul’s Natural History Museum has announced a remarkable discovery in the Black Sea: the ruins of an ancient sunken city, some 2,400 years old, which hides yet-to-be-deciphered secrets, according to information provided by Anatolian Archaeology.
Ruins of an ancient city, discovered in the Black Sea
In 2020, the first scientific underwater exploration mission took place in this region. Now, the findings of this expedition are beginning to be revealed, bringing to light artifacts that are thousands of years old and the ruins of an ancient port city that has withstood the erosion of time for 1,500 years.
Kerpe is a small bay located on the west coast of the Black Sea, about 100 km as the crow flies from Istanbul. The Greek word for this bay was “Kalpe”, which translates to “pot” or “jug”, thus indicating its importance in antiquity.
Throughout the Roman, Byzantine and Genoese eras, Kerpe served as an essential trade hub, transit station and shelter for ships sailing along the Black Sea littoral. Artefacts discovered in this ancient area are now on display in a new exhibition, highlighting the port’s historic role as a crucial point in the network of Black Sea trade routes.
Kerp. Photo source: Unsplash
What was learned about the sunken city in the Black Sea
During the Ottoman period, the port of Kerpe was also a key point for Istanbul’s wood and fuel supply, transporting logs, coal and building materials into the city. Long before the Ottoman period, however, the port was an important crossroads, before it finally sank beneath the waves.
Artifacts recovered from the sunken settlement have been dated to be up to 2,400 years old. These include amphorae, containers commonly used for transportation in antiquity, as well as other finds that are usually associated with a trading center.
Equally significant are the findings from the ancient port itself. It was the remains of the pier in the ancient port of Kerpe that prompted the start of excavations in 2020. The team of divers descended into the sunken city about 80 meters from the shore, at a depth of 4 meters. There they worked to recover artifacts spread over an area of about 2,000 square meters, including two sections of the ancient seawall.
What objects were found
Excavations are ongoing and are being carried out by the Kocaeli Museums Directorate under the supervision of the Ministry of Culture and Tourism, General Directorate of Cultural Heritage and Museums.
“We think it is extremely valuable in highlighting trade relations between East and West from antiquity to the Ottoman period in the Black Sea. Therefore, we are trying to present in our museum the cultural artifacts found during underwater excavations in chronological order and with the help of animations,” said Serkan Gedük, director of the Kocaeli Museum, which hosts the discoveries.
“During the excavations, we identified a lot of underwater cultural heritage, from remains of commercial amphorae dating from the 4th century BC. until the twelfth century AD. to red-glazed pottery, lamps, fragments of pipes, various cultural artifacts from the Ottoman period and remains of shipwrecks that we discovered in the region,” he added. The exhibition is titled “The Silent Port of the Black Sea: Kalpe”.
