Turkish archaeologists didn't have to do much work to figure out the ship's age after looking at its structural design. The age of the ship, which is now known as the "Kızılan Ottoman Wreck" near the Datça coast of Turkey, is unmistakably determined by a seal discovered on it. In 1078 Hijri, this ship sank at least 70 to 100 meters below the surface of the ocean.
According to today's widely used Gregorian calendar, that year was 1667–68. The Ottoman Turkish Empire's dominance was then at its peak. Mughal Emperor Aurangzeb was on the throne in Delhi at that time.
A year earlier, Shivaji had escaped from Agra Fort, evading Mughal troops and spies, returned to Maharashtra, and started the war against Delhi with renewed vigor. From the remains of this ship that sank in the Mediterranean Sea about 357 years ago, historians are now learning more details about Ottoman Turkish maritime activities.
The list of ancient artifacts found in the ship's wreckage kept growing longer. This certainly increased the enthusiasm of marine archaeologists. Research team leader Professor Harun Özdaş says, “Thirty-six rifles well-wrapped in packages, more than 50 grenades from that era, swords, daggers, pistols, and more than three thousand bullets have been found from the remains of that sunken ship”. But the list doesn't end here.
From this shallow-sea archaeological site, 135 smoking pipes, two chess boards, at least 40 Chinese porcelain vessels, water jugs, wooden spoons and combs, leather flasks, and many other items have been found. Experts report that never has no Ottoman ship that sank in the 17th century been discovered in Turkish waters. That's why archaeologists are so excited about this 'Kizilan Ottoman Wreck'.
Moreover, so many different types of items have been found here that archaeologists' work has become fascinating. The seal found from the ship's remains is also being given special importance by archaeologists. From it, besides learning the year of the ship's voyage, a name has also been found: Abdullah Ahmed. The seal refers to him as 'Khudabanda'. For this reason, it's thought he might have been an influential person. Again, some believe it could also be the ship's name.
Researchers at Turkey's Maritime History Application and Research Center say, 'Photogrammetry has been used to properly understand this ship, which is about 30 meters long and 9 meters wide.' Photogrammetry is a detailed collection of information about an area by joining numerous photographs taken from different angles of a region, like a collage.
So much has been found in Datça so far that it's believed an entire exhibition hall could be created just with materials from this maritime archaeological site. Researchers have reported that an Ottoman ship sunken in the Mediterranean Sea was discovered in 2024. A large quantity of gold and silver coins was recovered from that ship. Shortly after that, this ship was found. The Mediterranean seabed is therefore becoming increasingly attractive to archaeologists.
