Archaeologists from the University of Warsaw have uncovered multiple ancient shipwrecks near the historic port of Ptolemais in northeastern Libya, revealing new insights into Mediterranean maritime activity.

The wreck site spans over 100 metres, suggesting repeated ship losses along the rocky approach to the harbour.

Researchers recovered submerged columns, anchors, and probes, as well as artefacts including a rare bronze Roman balance scale component shaped like a woman’s head, amphorae, and cargo fragments, one possibly containing crystallized wine.

Ptolemais, founded by the Ptolemaic dynasty in the late fourth or early third century BC, was a major Greek city in Cyrenaica that flourished until the Arab conquest in the seventh century AD, Heritage Daily has reported.

Excavations nearby also revealed a previously unknown road to the acropolis and a Roman milestone with a Greek inscription from the Severan dynasty, highlighting the city’s prosperity in the third century AD.