Why fire a cannon at a example of an Israeli shipwreck ? For science , of course !
The vessel in enquiry was found in the walled porthole city of Akko — known in English asAcre — the historically strategical coastal link to the Levant . The wreck apparently dates to the 1840 campaign the British , Austrians and Ottomans waged against the Egyptians who hold up Akko at the clip . A direct hit by a shell on the master gunpowder magazine in November of that yr caused a giant explosion , and Akko was taken the undermentioned 24-hour interval .
The crash was discovered in Akko harbor at a depth of about 12 feet and its roughly 75 - foot - retentive hull was excavated over a duad from 2006 to 2008 . Researchers think it was a small armed Egyptian vas with 16 hit man in total — 11 cannon ball , several lead bullets , and six muskets were find out inside , among other finds .
The sides of the ship were made of solid oak about 6.7 inches wooden-headed , raising the question of what security they offered against cannon fire . To find out , researcher make a scale model to shoot at , accept that a roughly 12 - pound cannon ball found in the shipwreck site was a distinctive rocket .
They found that a 12 - muller cannonball would have easily fall into place the side of the original ship , causing much home hurt . Their experiment also showed in gunner really desire to be nasty , they made sure cannonballs traveled slower — that increased the number and size of splinters sire , potentially inflicting more casualty .
The scientistsdetailed their findings online February 23 in the Journal of Archaeological Science .
Credit : National Maritime Museum , Haifa , Israel .
ArchaeologyCannonsHistoryScience
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