The shipwreck of Uluburun

a sensational find from the Bronze age

As interesting as the castle itself are the collections of the Museum of Underwater Archeology housed within the premises. The museum, the most important of its kind in the world, is the brainchild of Professor George Bass, and his Institute of Nautical Archaeology, and contains treasures from a series of historic wrecks discovered on Turkey's southern shores. Mycenaean and Canaanite artifacts recovered from a l2th century B.C. wreck found off Cape Gelidonya (Antalya) in 1960 formed the original core of the museum. On display in the castle's Gothic Chapel is a full scale reconstruction of one third of an Eastern Roman wreck from the 7th century A.D. excavated by Dr. Bass. Finds from the world's oldest known shipwreck, a 14th century B.C. vessel recently excavated off Uluburun (Kas), will soon join the collection. The Italian Tower houses coins and jewelry from all periods. Most impressive of all is the Glass Hall containing a spectacular cargo of medieval glassware from an 11th century Islamic wreck.

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