ISLAND OF GOZO, MALTA—An international team of underwater archaeologists returned this year to the site of a Phoenician shipwreck off the coast of the Maltese island of Gozo. The Times of Malta reports the researchers discovered a unique jug at the site that was made locally, demonstrating that the ship had docked somewhere on the Maltese archipelago. “We now have a ship that was actually leaving the Maltese islands before it sank off Gozo, because the island was one of its port calls,” says University of Malta archaeologist Timmy Gambin. “A shipwreck without any local items could mean that the ship just happened to sink close to Malta during its voyage.” Amphoras from North Africa and western Sicily were also found, demonstrating the Maltese islands were part of an international trade network. To read about a Phoenician shipwreck found off the coast of Spain, go to “History’s 10 Greatest Wrecks: Bajo Campagna.”
