1. Home
2. Highlights
3. Lebanon’s Hidden Underwater Mysteries

In 2001, a spectacular discovery briefly caught the attention of the international archaeological community. Off the coast of Tyre, a joint team of French researchers and Lebanese archaeologists uncovered the remains of an ancient city submerged beneath the sea.

An entire city, named Saidoun, emerged from the depths: monumental walls, sacred chambers, freshwater wells, marble slabs and massive stone blocks dating back to around 1370 BCE, nearly 4,000 years ago. To this day, this excavation remains one of the most significant breakthroughs in the underwater exploration of southern Lebanon. Yet, since then, silence. Not due to waning interest, but rather to a lack of resources. 

Later in 2001, following the discovery of Saidoun, another extraordinary sight came to light. Off the coast of Zahrani, about seven kilometers north of Tyre, archaeologists identified the remnants of a second ancient city: Yarmuta, estimated to be over 5,000 years old. The site appeared as a long stretch of submerged stone blocks extending more than 500 meters underwater. But once again, no comprehensive excavation, no official inventory. The findings remain preliminary, as the investigations were halted for the same reasons already mentioned.

For Sean Kingsley, director of Wreck Watch and the Center for East-West Maritime Exploration, “Lebanon, the cradle of ancient maritime trade, now seems stuck in a paradoxical state of stagnation.” 

With more than 25 years of experience, the archaeologist, researcher and consultant told This is Beirut, “At the heart of the Mediterranean basin, Lebanon’s coastline gave rise to some of the world’s earliest trade routes in human history. As early as the Bronze Age, when the very concept of trade was taking shape, Lebanon’s shores played a central role in connecting the great civilizations of the Levant, Egypt, Anatolia and the Aegean Sea.”

“With such a legacy, one would expect the coastal waters to be scattered with shipwrecks, silent witnesses to thousands of years of seafaring. Yet underwater discoveries remain rare, almost negligible,” he said.

A quick look south, toward Israel, reveals a striking contrast. There, a specialized underwater archaeology unit within the Israel Antiquities Authority operates with substantial funding, centralized organization and resources matching the scale of the task. The result: more than 200 wrecks identified to date, spanning from the Late Bronze Age to the Napoleonic era. “Along the Israeli coastline, there is believed to be a wreck every 50 meters. It is a methodical, proactive and above all continuous effort that ensures nothing of the submerged heritage is lost,” Kingsley noted.

In Lebanon, the situation is quite different. According to Lucy Semaan, a maritime archaeologist with the Honor Frost Foundation – a charitable organization founded in 2011 to promote advancement and research in maritime archaeology, particularly in the eastern Mediterranean including Lebanon, Syria, Cyprus and Egypt – Lebanon’s strategic location in the eastern Mediterranean has made it a thriving hub of maritime activity since at least the Bronze Age.

Having led international marine and terrestrial archaeological studies and excavations, as well as projects in marine geophysics, geoarchaeology, capacity building and public awareness across the eastern Mediterranean and the Arab world since 1996, Semaan, believes that despite the country’s rich maritime legacy, underwater archaeology in Lebanon remains in its early stages and is still limited in scope.

Notable discoveries are scarce and far between. Beyond scattered amphora fragments, the most significant finds date back to January and February 1973 and July 1974, a true treasure hunt led by American diver Bob Marx (Robert F. Marx), as recounted by Kingsley. Hailing from Pennsylvania, Marx uncovered Phoenician shipwrecks dating to the 5^th and 4^th centuries BCE, including one carrying an exceptional cargo of terracotta figurines. He also found two Greek wrecks from the 3^rd and 2^nd centuries BCE. He also located two Roman wrecks from the 1^st century CE, and a Byzantine wreck from the 6^th century CE. These discoveries, both archaeologically and symbolically significant, underscore Lebanon’s deep Mediterranean heritage.

Along similar lines, marine biology expert Marcos Hado highlights another landmark find. The sarcophagus of Eshmunazar II, discovered intact off the coast of Saida in 1855, is now housed at the Louvre Museum in France. Despite its Lebanese maritime origin, Lebanon never formally requested its repatriation. Some suggest that, given the instability and looting at the National Museum of Beirut, the artifact is actually safer in Paris.

Lebanon’s underwater potential is immense. The silence of the depths is not one of absence, but of neglect. “With just a bit of political will, steady funding and a committed team, this coastline could become an open history book for the world,” emphasizes Kingsley.

Chekka, Seven Decades On: Lebanon’s Forgotten Shipwrecks 

Almost 70 years ago, along the shores of Chekka in northern Lebanon, two brothers with a passion for the sea stumbled upon an exceptional discovery, an expert in underwater archaeology told This is Beirut on condition of anonymity. At the foot of the coastal tunnel, buried beneath layers of sand, rest two Phoenician ships lying side by side, loaded with intact amphorae. These shipwrecks, unnoticed at the time by archaeologists and authorities, appear frozen in time, a message from the past stranded just meters from the shore.

The two young men, barely in their twenties, dove cautiously, slowly revealing the ancient outlines of the merchant ships. Each amphora they brought up was a treasure, intact, sealed and showing signs of a flourishing ancient trade between the Phoenician cities and the Mediterranean. However, word of the discovery spread quickly.

Likely alerted by witnesses or circulating information, the US Embassy in Beirut reportedly dispatched a team of military divers, probably Marines. Within hours, the site was cordoned off. The two brothers were forcefully removed. The operation lasted three days. Every visible amphora was retrieved. The ships’ holds were emptied. The wrecks were meticulously surveyed, documented and photographed. After that, everything went quiet.

The Lebanese authorities never got involved. There was no official record, no investigation, not even a footnote in the archives. The only remaining evidence is an amphora preserved carefully by one of the discoverers, now over 90 years old. He still talks about it with a sparkle in his eyes. He even has photographs taken at the time showing the shipwrecks and the amphorae lined up on the beach, intact and ready to tell their story.

And the shipwrecks are still there. Buried beneath layers of sand. Forgotten, but not lost. The elder brother still remembers their exact location. “With the right means, we could find them, document them, save them. They are still there, under the sand, ready to tell what others have chosen to keep silent,” our source said, speaking on condition of anonymity.

This story raises a haunting question: How many other treasures of Lebanon’s submerged past have been lost to collective memory?

To be continued…