Named the amazing purpose of the ancient marble disk discovered in the Mediterranean Sea

2500-year-old “talisman” protected ships from the evil eye in the old days

A rare 2,500-year-old marble disc designed to protect ancient ships and ward off the evil eye was discovered recently in the Mediterranean Sea near Israel’s Palmachim Beach.

The 2,500-year-old marble disc, meant to protect ancient ships and ward off the evil eye, was discovered by lifeguard David Shalom diving into the sea and donated to the Israel Antiquities Authority.

Some time ago, the Israel Antiquities Authority announced on social media that the object that the lifeguard turned over was a 2,500-year-old marble eye-shaped disc that was attached to ships to protect them from the evil eye.

Experts say the relic, found during a dive by lifeguard David Shalom at the archaeological site of Yavne Yam near Palmachim Beach, dates back to the 5th to 4th centuries BC.

Yaakov Sharvit, Director of Marine Archeology at the Israel Antiquities Authority, explains: “From the drawings on ceramics, mosaics and ancient coins, as well as from historical sources from the 5th century BC, we learn that these objects were common on the bows of ships and served to protect against evil eye and envious, helped to navigate and acted as a pair of eyes looking ahead and warning of danger. This decoration is still common on modern ships in Portugal, Malta, Greece and the Far East.”

According to Archeology World, the large white marble disk, 20 cm in diameter, is flat on one side and curved on the other, and has a central cavity with traces of paint that appear as two circles around the center.

The disk is identified as having an eye motif, in Greek “ophthalmoi”, and such disks adorned the prows of ancient warships and merchant ships.

Lead or bronze nails attached the center of the disc to the ship’s hull. Archaeologists have discovered many artifacts in the same area.

Although this artifact was once common and one would expect to find many similar artifacts, it is actually rare, experts say. So far, only four such ancient objects have been discovered in the Mediterranean Sea: two from the wreckage of an ancient merchant ship found at the Tektas Burnu site off the western coast of Turkey, between the islands of Samos and Kios, dating back to 440-425 BC, and two on the Mediterranean coast of Israel, one from Carmel Beach and another, just discovered, on the coast of Yavne Yam.

Water surveys conducted by the Department of Marine Archeology of the Israel Antiquities Authority since the 1980s have unearthed finds from shipwrecked ships, indicating extensive commercial activity at the site.