Shipwreck off Antalya is 4,700 years old, Guinness says it's the world's oldest

At first, the team thought it was an Ottoman-era wreck. Then it turned out the ship is nearly 5,000 years old. This week, the wreck off Kekova Island in Türkiye's Antalya province entered Guinness World Records as the world's oldest shipwreck.

What happened?

Hakan Oniz of Akdeniz University told Anadolu Agency that the record was officially announced this week. He heads the Department of Conservation and Restoration of Cultural Heritage at the university's Faculty of Fine Arts.

His team has spent years doing research along the Mediterranean coast on behalf of Türkiye's Culture and Tourism Ministry. Underwater excavations near Kekova began in 2024. At a depth of 35 to 40 meters, researchers recovered amphorae about 4,700 years old.

What happened before?

During coastal and surface surveys in 2024, the team spotted objects that pointed to a shipwreck. Their first guess was that it was 100 to 400 years old, so Ottoman. Their work had mostly focused on wrecks from 2,000 to 2,500 years ago.

Then doubts crept in. Oniz said some artifacts looked like more recent objects the team knew less well. During a literature search last year, they found similar amphorae in publications on discoveries in Egypt.

With the ministry's permission, they went back to the site. Further research showed the ship dates to the Early Bronze Age.

What's next?

The finds, mostly amphorae, are being conserved and examined at a regional lab and at Akdeniz University's underwater archaeology lab in Kemer.

Oniz said they will go on display in the coming months at the newly completed "Four Seas, One Museum" in Istanbul's Haydarpaşa district. Some will also appear at the Mediterranean Underwater Archaeology Museum in Kemer, Antalya, where construction is nearly done.

Oniz added that the team believes Türkiye ranks among the top two or three countries in underwater archaeology. His reasons: strong infrastructure, highly qualified experts and one of the richest coastlines in the world.

So the wreck wasn't just old. It was far older than anyone first thought.