10,000 pause on trek to US
AN ANCIENT Greek trading ship from 400BC found under the Black Sea is the world’s oldest intact shipwreck.
The 75ft vessel with its mast, rudders and rowing benches still in place was discovered off the coast of Bulgaria using a probe piloted by British scientists.
It lies 7,000ft down and is in such good condition because bacteria which decays timber cannot survive without oxygen, which is absent at such depths. Experts hope its cargo is also intact.
Researchers are stunned how similar the find is to a ship depicted on the Siren Vase at the British Museum, which shows mythical hero Odysseus tied to the mast.
The 2,400-year-old galley was one of a fleet of trading ships supplying Greek colonies on the Black Sea.
Dr Helen Farr of the Black Sea Maritime Archaeology Project said: “You see this ship appear in the light at the bottom so perfectly preserved it feels like you step back in time. It’s like another world.”
The project, led by the University of Southampton, has turned up 67 wrecks including Roman trading ships and a 17th Century Cossack raiding fleet.
Chief scientist Jon Adams said: “This will change our understanding of shipbuilding and seafaring in the ancient world.” A CONVOY of up to 10,000 migrants heading to the US border has halted briefly in southern Mexico.
The group of mostly Honduran migrants was last night in Huixtla in Chiapas state around 31 miles north of the Guatemalan border. US President Donald Trump has vowed to cut millions of dollars in aid unless it is stopped.
Honduran authorities say at least two men have died on Mexican roads as the migrants head north.