A scuba diver has discovered a second Crusader-era sword on the seabed off Israel’s Mediterranean coast, in the same area where he recovered a similar weapon in 2021.
Shlomi Katzin, a maritime archaeology student at the University of Haifa, spotted the sword while diving near Dor Beach, south of Haifa in February this year.
Katzin took to the water after seeing a group of other divers using a metal detector. Believing them to be antiquities thieves, he chased them away and found the sword, believed to date to the 12th century, partially exposed on the seabed.
Although the weapon was heavily encrusted with centuries of shells and marine growths, Katzin said he immediately recognised the significance of the find and reported it for recovery.
‘It was clear to me that this was an ancient item that required reporting,’ he said.
The Israel Antiquities Authority authorised the recovery of the sword, which was taken to a private medical facility in Haifa for a CT scan.
‘The technology allowed us to peek through the layers of time and stone,’ said Dr Eyal Berkowitz, lecturer at the Medicine Faculty of the University of Haifa.
‘Using CT, we were able to see what the human eye cannot, the internal structure of the sword and its precise physical condition, all through a non-invasive examination that preserved the integrity of this rare artefact for future generations.’
The sword has since been transferred to a laboratory at Haifa University for conservation and detailed analysis. Researchers examining the weapon said it was likely manufactured in Europe and designed for one-handed use, consistent with Crusader-period swords.
‘This is an extremely rare find,’ said representatives of the Israel Antiquities Authority. ‘Very few swords from this period have been discovered in Israel.’
The Carmel coast, where both swords were found, has served as a natural anchorage for thousands of years and is known for archaeological remains linked to maritime activity.
‘Swords were valuable objects and were therefore carefully maintained and preserved,’ said Sara Lantos of the University of Haifa. ‘The discovery and study of such a symbolic and personal object are rare, and enrich our knowledge of the material culture of the Crusader period.’
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