As diving is one of the oldest aquatic practices, its history dates back to time immemorial. Transporting ourselves to prehistoric times, archaeological remains from various cultures such as Asian and Mediterranean civilisations mark the clear origins of this practice.
Millennia-Old Evidence of Diving
As early as 4500 BC, dives were taking place along the coasts of the Mediterranean and Asia, with the ultimate goal of crafting jewellery from pearls, coral, shells, and mother-of-pearl. There exists a depiction of an underwater harvesting scene, created with mother-of-pearl inlays on the walls of the ancient city of Bismaya, or texts from 2250 BC referencing the use of pearls as tribute payments to a Chinese emperor.
These remains and literary references from various Greek classics such as Aristotle, Herodotus, and Plutarch place these early dives between 5000 and 4500 BC.
Marine Products: A New Market of the Era
To obtain such materials, divers would plunge into the sea holding their breath, descending while gripping large stones which they then released to ascend. The goal was to collect various objects for later trade. A clear example dates back to 3200 BC in Thebes (Egypt), where artisans used vast quantities of mother-of-pearl shells.The island of Crete, specifically the settlements of Kuphonisis and Palaikastra, were major trading hubs for goods extracted by divers, such as the spiny dye-murex snail (murex trunculus) and other species used to dye the garments of ancient kings purple with their pulp.
The First Depiction of a Dive
Dating to 880 BC, it consists of a wooden bas-relief (now housed in the British Museum, London), discovered in the palace of Persian King Ashurbanipal II, showing the monarch submerged while crossing a river, breathing with the aid of a wineskin (a vessel made from a ram’s hide and filled with air), leading a group of soldiers. Some interpretations suggest the wineskin may have been used as a flotation device rather than an air supply.
Another bas-relief was found depicting Phoenicians fleeing Assyrian archers along the River Tigris – the cradle of Mediterranean civilisations – using the same diving technique.
Leonardo da Vinci: A Visionary of the Era
Though the medieval period saw little advancement in diving evolution, Leonardo da Vinci designed one of the first models of basic diving equipment. His suit adopted the structure of a diving bell, with two tubes connected to the surface, and he also conceived a form of flippers shaped like frog’s legs.
