The Ancient Jesus Boat

The 1986 two brothers from Kibbutz Ginosarmeters (7.5 feet) and a height of 1.2 meters (3.9
discovered thefeet). It is built in the typical ancient Mediterranean
Galilee Boat when a severe drought resulted in the'shell-based' construction, employing pegged
lowering of the waters of the Sea of Galileemortise-and-tenon joints to edge-join the planking.
(Hebrew: Yam Kinneret). The vessel had been buriedIron nails hold the frames to the hull.Numerous
in, and thus protected by, the seabed's sediments.repairs, the reuse of timbers and a multiplicity of
The Antiquities Authority, assisted by manywood types (twelve) evident in the hull, suggest that
volunteers, rescued the boat in a remarkablethis vessel had a long work life an owner of meager
eleven-day excavation. Excavators packaged themeans. Based on several criteria the Galilee Boat is
weak and waterlogged hull in a cocoon of fiberglassfirmly dated to the first centuries BCE-CE. An
and polyurethane foam, and then successfully floatedanalyses of crew size suggests that this is the type
it to the nearby Yigal Allon Centre, where itof boat referred to in the Gospels in use among
underwent an extensive carefully monitoredJesus' Disciples, as well as that used by theagainst
eleven-year-long conservation process in athe Romans in the nautical Battle of Migdal in CE 67.
specially-built pool.To conserve it, the boat wasThis humble vessel is, thus, a remarkable porthole
submerged in a solution of heated polyethylene glycolinto the past providing a clearer view of the Galilean
(PRG). This synthetic wax replaced the water in theseafaring that forms the backdrop to both Jesus'
wood cells. The hull was then allowed to dry slowlyministry and the Battle of Migdal.In February 2000,
and cleaned of excess wax, thus allowing for itsfourteen years after its excavation, the boat moved
present exhibition in the atmosphere-controlledto its permanent home, in a new wing of the Yigal
museum environment.The boat is preserved to aAllon Centre, which is devoted to the story of man in
length of 8.2 meters (26.9 feet), a breadth of 2.3the Galilee.