Ancient Ships & Sea Trade

The ancient Phoenician boatbuilding skills are not a lost art . . . in fact they are still in use today. Sanford Holst documented this remarkable experience in Lebanon: "When I was in Tyre in 2004, the local boatmaster was just finishing one-and-a-half years of work constructing a boat by hand using the old Phoenician methods described below. It was an absolutely beautiful vessel, and he took the time to tell me about many of the details that went into it. The maiden voyage was to be two days later. On the second day, I was having lunch at the harbor in Byblos -- about 70 miles (115 km) north of Tyre -- and quite incredibly the Phoenician boat sailed directly into the harbor and docked right in front of my table! The crew was as surprised as I was. We happily celebrated their successful voyage."
Being built in Tyre by hand ... almost finished

Phoenician ships have always been a source of astonishment to the many people who believe history is just one long upward sweep from the primitive past to the cultured present. In fact, it is more a matter of ups and downs, with the present (hopefully) being higher than the past. This was dramatically illustrated by the Dark Ages which followed the fall of the Roman Empire. Before that time, ancient ships were quite spectacular.
The rise of the Phoenicians' shipbuilding and sea trade from meager fisherman roots to opulent cargoes of gold, jewels and royal-purple cloth is explored in Chapters 2 through 19 of Phoenicians: Lebanon's Epic Heritage. Shipbuilding and sea trade are woven throughout the Phoenicians' long history due to their vital importance in shaping and supporting early Lebanese society.