Archaeologists found five curious lead boat-shaped objects dating back to the Bronze Age, over 3,000 years ago, at the site of the ancient city of Hala Sultan Tekke in Cyprus. Interestingly, similar artifacts have only been found in the famous Uluburun shipwreck.

They were discovered in two different locations: four of them appeared in a chamber tomb called “Tomb ZZ,” and the fifth in a room considered to be one of the city’s storerooms. All are made of lead and have a clearly boat-like shape, with pointed or rounded ends and, in some cases, holes or grooves.

Researchers believe these artifacts were part of composite lures, meaning fishing tools that combined the weight of the lead with metal hooks to attract fish.

bronze age artifacts cyprus uluburun
Drone photograph of Hala Sultan Tekke. Credit: Peter M. Fischer

The Connection to the Sea

Hala Sultan Tekke was a prosperous city between 1630 and 1150 BCE, located next to a protected bay that is now the Larnaca Salt Lake. This privileged location and its copper production made it one of the most important commercial centers of the Late Bronze Age in the Mediterranean.

But beyond trade, its inhabitants relied on the sea for food, as confirmed by the numerous fish remains—such as mullets and groupers—found at the site.

If these small lead boat-shaped objects were lures, it would mean that the fishermen of the time were already using advanced techniques. When freshly polished, the lead would shine underwater like a small fish, attracting prey, while the holes and grooves would allow hooks to be tied to them.

bronze age artifacts cyprus uluburun
The objects of lead. Credit: Lucia Avial Chicharro and Peter M. Fischer

Researchers wonder whether the boat shape of these objects holds any special meaning. It could simply be a functional design, but it’s also possible that it referred to the fishing boats of the time, or even to a type of vessel called a “br,” which was very common in the eastern Mediterranean during the Bronze Age. This type of boat, of Levantine origin, was lightweight and versatile, ideal for fishing and local transport.

Parallels with a Famous Shipwreck

Most surprising is that the only known similar objects until now come from the Uluburun shipwreck, a merchant ship that sank off the coast of present day Turkey around the year 1320 a.C., at the same time that Tomb ZZ, where the Cypriot artifacts were found, was in use.

The fantastic cargo of the Uluburun, a Bronze Age ship of uncertain origin

Since these ships probably sailed at a modest pace, averaging about 3 knots, this speed would have been slow enough to keep the fishing gear submerged, the researchers say.

Alternatively, the fishing gear could have been balanced and cast into the sea and slowly dragged from a boat or from the shore repeatedly until a fish bit the hook. These alternatives rule out the possibility that these boat-shaped objects were simple sinkers for bottom fishing, and instead must be considered composite lures, they conclude.

bronze age artifacts cyprus uluburun
Possible reconstruction of the two types of lures with attached fishing hooks. Credit: Peter M. Fischer

The four lures found in Tomb ZZ were alongside the remains of an adult man and woman, accompanied by other objects such as ceramics, a cylinder seal, and a bronze hook, which could indicate they were fishers. The fifth lure was found surrounded by stone weights likely used for nets, in what may have been a storage area for fishing equipment.

SOURCES

Fischer P. M., and Manolova T. V. (2025) Boat-shaped objects of lead from late Bronze Age Hala Sultan Tekke, Cyprus, and the Uluburun shipwreck, Oxford Journal of Archaeology, DOI:doi.org/10.1111/ojoa.12325

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