David Abulafia David Abulafia

A wealth of knowledge salvaged from shipwrecks

Goods found on board can illuminate trade routes and global connections, often going back thousands of years, in ways no other archaeological sites can

Some of the gold treasures retrieved from the extraordinarily rich 9th-century Belitung wreck found off Indonesia. [Getty Images] 
issue 03 February 2024

The flow of histories of the world, or parts of it, in a bundle of items never ceases, 12 years after Neil MacGregor presented world history through 100 objects from the British Museum. Many of these were of unknown provenance and therefore disconnected from their original context. By contrast, world history built around shipwrecks offers the opportunity to seize precise moments in time – most often when a sudden emergency has taken a ship to the bottom of the sea in the midst of everyday activities.

GIF Image

Disagree with half of it, enjoy reading all of it

TRY A MONTH FREE
Our magazine articles are for subscribers only. Try a month of Britain’s best writing, absolutely free.

Comments

Join the debate, free for a month

Be part of the conversation with other Spectator readers by getting your first month free.

Already a subscriber? Log in