Lionel Casson's encyclopedic study is the first of its kind to use
underwater archaeological data to refine and area of scholarship that
had, for the most part, relied on ancient texts and graphic
representations. Tracing the history of early ships and seamanship from
pre-dynastic Egypt to the Roman empire, from skiffs and barges to huge
oared warships and royal yachts, Casson describes not only the ships
themselves, but also the make-up and training of the crews, placement of
weaponry, how cargo was stored, methods of navigation, harbor
facilities, and the ways ships were named.