Humanity has a fascination with the past – even going so far as to dig up the remains found in graves to gain better insight into the lifestyle of the ancient inhabitants. If you’re full of curiosity about ancient submerged cities, here are some of the top underwater ruins around the world!
- England – Dunwich
Comparable in size to 14th century London, Dunwich was a thriving port city that was quite a hub of industry and rated as one of the largest cities in England. Unfortunately for the residents, the city placement wasn’t ideal, as it was built on soft sedimentary rock. In 1286 when a wave swept in, it claimed 400 buildings, mainly houses and shops. Ever since then, this city has been eroding away at the rate of an estimated metre per year. It is now completely submerged and only the ruins of a stone church remain.
- Jamaica – Port Royal
Likely made famous in modern times by the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, showing Port Royal as being one of Jack Sparrows regular haunts, it was a real life hub of smugglers, prostitutes, pirates and privateers during its heyday. It was one of the largest colonies of the New World and was a major shipping power. That is, until the earthquake of 1692 happened and buildings tumbled into the ocean, due to being inadequately supported on a sand ‘spit’ which split during the earthquake.
- Japan – Yonaguni
This small Japanese island off the coast of Taiwan has very unique rock structures off of its shoreline, so unique in fact that many believe they are ruins from an ancient civilization. With visible terraces and steps seen at a depth of 25 metres, it’s easy to understand why you could believe they were carved by human hands. Masaaki Kimura, a geologist and founder of the Marine Science and Cultural Heritage Research Association, was the first to claim he spotted manmade buildings connected by roads, and he also believes he’s discovered a pyramid – dubbed the Yonaguni Monument – in the strangely angular rocks. However, his claims are disputed by many, most notably by Robert Schoch, a geologist from the University of Boston, who has dived below the waves in the area many times, and considers the formations to be natural. Click here to watch a short clip of a dive at Yonaguni, made by a visiting Cape Town resident.
- Israel – Atlit-Yam
Off-shore of Haifa, a kilometre into the Mediterranean Sea, is a village so untouched by time and currents, it has been described as having ‘weevils in the grain stores, human skeletons undisturbed in their graves, and a stone circle still standing where it was first erected’. That’s quite a vivid and incredible picture painted, and considering it has been dated to 7000 BC, it is one of the most amazing underwater finds yet.
- India – Cambay Ruins could be Dwaraka
Off the western coast of India in the Gulf of Khambhat (also called Cambay), 120 feet below the surface, lies a massive, ancient city which is dated between 7,500 – 9,500 years old – taken from carbon dating teeth and human bones found here. This city pre-dates any found within India by at least 5,000 years, leaving many to assume this submerged culture was the forefathers of the Harappa culture. This discovery backs up the Hindu Mahabharatha book which spoke of the day that Lord Krishna left and described the oceans rising to cover Dwaraka. Interestingly, the discovery of this sprawling city has led to chronological problems for archaeologists, who previously believed that at the time of the submerged cities building, the population was living in small communities. (These ruins findings are doubted by many, despite being featured in a BBC article by Tom Housden dated 19 January 2002, as no further information has come to light since 2002.)
What other underwater ruins, monuments, or cities do you know of?
Main image credited to Thermos (Creative Commons)
