Undisturbed wicker baskets filled with fruit have been discovered in the submerged ruins of Thonis-Heracleion, a near-legendary city off the coast of Egypt. The city was Egypt’s largest port on the Mediterranean before the establishment of Alexandria.
The wicker baskets were found to be filled with doum (a sacred fruit of an African palm tree) and grape seeds. French marine archaeologist Franck Goddio was surprised with the discovery of the artifacts, and that the baskets were untouched for more than 2,000 years. “Nothing was disturbed,” Goddio said to The Guardian. “It was very striking to see baskets of fruits.”
Goddio pointed out that a possible explanation for the preservation of the baskets and their contents is that they were placed within an underground room.
Photograph: Christoph Gerigk/Franck Goddio/Hilti Foundation
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