In Photos: 8 Byzantine Empire Era Shipwrecks Excavated in Turkey

Archaeologists working at a site in Turkey called Yenikapi have unearthed 37 remarkably well-preserved shipwrecks. The shipwrecks date back to the time of the Byzantine Empire, and are found in the port of the ancient city Istanbul, then called Constantinople. Eight of the shipwrecks that date to the fifth to 11th centuries are now described in a new report [Full story: Byzantine Shipwrecks Shed Light on Shipbuilding History].

Here are photos of those shipwrecks:

The Yenikapi shipwreck called YK 14 was a 9th-century merchant ship, seen here under sprinklers in April 2007. Waterlogged archaeological wood can be severely damaged if it is allowed to dry and so it must be kept constantly wet during its excavation. (Photo courtesy of the Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/M. Jones.)

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The shipwreck that researchers call YK 23, shown in its original position, in December 2007. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/İlkay İvgin.)

Archaeologists from the Istanbul Archaeological Museums work to excavate the shipwreck called YK 24 in July 2007. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/M. Jones.)

Cemal Pulak, who is the project director at the Institute of Nautical Archaeology, examines deck beams from galley of the ship called YK 2 in April 2006. These beams were found near one end of the ship, and would have also functioned as rowers' benches. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/S. Matthews.)

The galley of the ship called YK 4 was split longitudinally shortly after it was excavated. The ship's bow is in the foreground of this photo, taken in October 2006. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/M. Jones.)

Rebecca Ingram and Michael Jones trace the planking of the ship called YK 11 onto clear plastic film, in October 2008. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/S. Matthews.)

Archaeologists from the Istanbul Archaeological Museums excavate shipwreck called YK 14 in April 2007. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/M. Jones.)

Pulak oversees the removal of a plank from galley YK 2 in August 2006. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University/R. Piercy.)

Workers map out the parts of the seventh-century shipwreck called YK 11, in June 2008. (Photo courtesy Institute of Nautical Archaeology at Texas A&M University /R. Ingram.)