Underwater archaeologists have located the remains of a 14th-century merchant vessel in the deep waters off the Comoros Archipelago. The wreck, identified as a unique hybrid of Swahili and Arab shipbuilding traditions, has remained largely undisturbed due to its depth and the protective silt of the Indian Ocean floor. Divers have recovered a diverse cargo, including large quantities of volcanic obsidian from the Rift Valley and jars of fossilized frankincense intended for trade with the Far East.
This discovery provides critical data on the 'maritime silk road' that connected East Africa to the Arabian Peninsula and India. The presence of specialized navigation instruments, including a rare bronze astrolabe with Swahili inscriptions, suggests that local African mariners played a much more significant role in deep-sea trans-oceanic trade than previously documented in colonial-era histories.