The weapon is estimated to be 900 years old.<\/b>
\nJERUSALEM \u2014 An Israeli scuba diver has salvaged an ancient sword off the country\u2019s Mediterranean coast that experts say dates back to the Crusaders. Israel\u2019s Antiquities Authority said Monday the man was on a weekend dive in northern Israel when he spotted a trove of ancient artifacts that included anchors, pottery and a yard-long sword. The diver was about 170 yards off the coast in 5.5-yard-deep water when he made the discovery. Experts say the area provided shelter for ancient ships and is home to many archaeological treasures, some dating back 4,000 years. But such discoveries can be elusive because of the constantly shifting sands. Fearing his discovery might be buried, the diver took the sword ashore and delivered it to government experts, the authority said. The weapon is estimated to be 900 years old. \u201cIt was found encrusted with marine organisms, but is apparently made of iron,\u201d said Nir Distelfeld, an inspector in the authority\u2019s robbery prevention unit. \u201cIt is exciting to encounter such a personal object, taking you 900 years back in time to a different era, with knights, armor and swords.\u201d The sword is to be cleaned and further analyzed, while the diver, identified as Shlomi Katzin, was given a certificate of appreciation for good citizenship. Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page. Enter your email and password to access comments. Forgot Password? Don’t have a Talk profile? Create one. Invalid username\/password. Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration. Create a commenting profile by providing an email address, password and display name. You will receive an email to complete the registration. Please note the display name will appear on screen when you participate. Already registered? Log in to join the discussion. Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login to participate in the conversation. Here\u2019s why. Use the form below to reset your password. When you’ve submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code. Send questions\/comments to the editors. \u00ab Previous<\/p>\n