A thousand-year-old oak boat found at the bottom of Kakhovka HPP (photo)
In Zaporizhzhia, an oak boat was found that washed up on the shore after the Kakhovka hydroelectric power plant was blown up by Russian occupation forces. This was announced during a briefing held by Svitlana Okhrimenko, head of the Khortytsia National Reserve, an Ukrinform correspondent reports.
According to Okhrimenko, the boat was underwater that constantly dried up and got wet. In order to carry out restoration work, it was transported to a special hangar.
The Khortytsia researcher said that there are only about 30 such boats in Ukraine. The boat found in Zaporizhzhia was made of a solid oak trunk. Its length is 6.8 meters and the height of its sides is about half a meter.
Earlier, similar boats were also discovered near the shores of Khortytsia Island. They were used by ancient Rus' settlements that existed in the X-XIV centuries. These boats were used for fishing, industrial needs, as well as for transportation and ferrying.
"The found boat was in very poor condition. Experts, assessing the state of preservation of the wood, suggest that it may be more than 1000 years old. But the exact dating will be established after radiocarbon analysis," the media reported.
In addition, some symbols were found on the boat, the meaning of which is still unknown.
The found boat was transported to the restoration hangar, where it will be immersed in a special chemical solution for preservation until further restoration. Upon completion, the boat will become an exhibit in the museum.
"The hull of the boat has been preserved by 70%. During the excavations, the boat was divided into several parts. We have a lot of work ahead of us, but we hope that we will be able to preserve this historical artifact," emphasized one of the expedition members.
As a reminder, in the village of Pokrovske, located in the Nikopol region, local residents found the remains of the Pokrovsk Sich Church, an old cemetery, and the remains of World War II soldiers.
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