Caesarea, Archaeology in Israel

Some scientists believe that the breakwater walls formed an intricate system of sluicing whereby the power of the sea was weakened, but how this functioned is not known yet. What seems certain is that the earthquake of 130 BCE pushed the harbour floor up, whereby the breakwaters came to lie just under the water surface. The result of this is 17 shipwrecks lying on the ocean floor, dating until the 5th Century when the harbour finally came into disuse. The shipwrecks are as yet largely unexplored.