Scuba diver finds a lost piece of history!

A scuba diver has found a 900-year-old Crusader sword with a three-foot blade off the coast of Israel.

The amateur diver spotted the sword and other ancient artifacts on the seabed off northern Israel, according to a statement from the Israel Antiquities Authority (IAA) said recently.

He was diving on October 9 when he spotted the sword, which boasts a foot-long hilt, along with stone anchors, metal anchors, and pottery fragments.

The artifacts were “apparently uncovered by waves and undercurrents that had shifted the sand,” the IAA said.

The diver took the sword up to the surface so it wouldn’t be stolen or covered up again, before handing it into the IAA.

The sword was found 200 metres (656 feet) from the shore, at a depth of four metres (13 feet), Koby Sharvit, director of the IAA’s Marine Archaeology Unit said.

Its size and shape suggest it belonged to a Crusader, as does the fact that it was found just a few kilometres from Atlit Castle, a Crusader fortress, Sharvit added.

Dating from 1096 to the late 13th century, the Crusades were a set of military expeditions by Western European Christians that aimed to retake the Holy Land in the Middle East after centuries of Muslim wars of expansion.

Nir Distelfeld, Inspector for the IAA’s Robbery Prevention Unit, said the sword is a rare find that has been preserved in perfect condition.

“It was found encrusted with marine organisms, but is apparently made of iron. t is exciting to encounter such a personal object, taking you 900 years back in time to a different era, with knights, armor, and swords,” Distelfeld said.

Sharvit said that the sword is well preserved because it was buried in a deep layer of sand, without oxygen.

It currently weighs around 5-6 kilograms due to the incrustation of stones and shells, but the sword itself probably weighs 1-2 kilograms, he said.

The coastline in the area has many natural coves that provided shelter for ancient ships, and settlements such as Dor and Atlit developed around the larger coves.

The sword will be sent to the IAA labs to be cleaned, said Sharvit, who hopes to learn more about its history when the metal itself is revealed.

IAA Director-General Eli Escosido said, “Once the sword has been cleaned and researched in the Israel Antiquities Authority’s laboratories, we will ensure it is displayed to the public.”

Source: Agencies