According to experts, this is the first time that the remains of a pirate ship have been found “in the heart of Barbary.”
The term Barbary referred to a large part of the western coastline of North Africa—from modern-day Morocco to Libya—in honor of the Berber people who lived there.
Who and What Was Found
Underwater archaeologists from Odyssey Marine Exploration (OME), a Florida-based company specializing in the search for sunken ships, stumbled upon the wreckage of a small 17th-century pirate vessel, known as a “Barbary corsair.”
The archaeologists made the discovery back in 2005 but were unable to publish information about it until a comprehensive historical study was completed. An article detailing the findings and the ship’s disaster has just been published in Wreckwatch, authored by OME founder and expedition leader Greg Stemm.
The underwater archaeologists located the site of the pirate shipwreck at a depth of about 830 meters while searching for the remains of the 80-gun English warship HMS Sussex, which sank in the area in 1694. The 2005 expedition also uncovered remnants of ancient Roman and Phoenician ships in the vicinity.
“As is often the case when searching for a specific sunken ship, we discovered numerous previously unseen sites,” Greg Stemm told Live Science.
The “Barbary corsair” surprised researchers by carrying a cargo of pots, pans, and other metal goods manufactured in Algeria. This suggests that the pirates may have attempted to disguise the ship as a merchant vessel. However, some artifacts found at the wreck site indicated that this pirate ship was loaded with stolen goods.
What Else Is Known About the Ship
The vessel, measuring 14 meters in length, was likely a tartan. Tartans were small ships with triangular sails on two masts that could also be propelled by oars.
Archaeologists examined the ship using a remotely operated vehicle (ROV). This allowed experts to learn that the crew, consisting of about twenty men, was well-armed, including cannons and numerous muskets. Researchers also discovered a rare spyglass, which the pirates likely seized from a European ship.
According to the initial discoverers, the pirate ship may have been heading toward the Spanish coast to capture and enslave people.
From the 15th to the 19th century, Barbary pirates posed a serious threat to ships and coastal populations in the Mediterranean and Atlantic. Captives taken during corsair raids were either ransomed or sold into slavery, often on the slave market in Algeria. These individuals were frequently held for ransom.
The activities of North African corsairs came to an end in the early 19th century when they were defeated in the Barbary Wars by the United States, Sweden, and the Kingdom of Sicily.