The Zaghemarz shipwreck is the remains of a 28 m long vessel emerged from the sand along the southern coasts of the Caspian Sea, in the Iranian Province of Mazandaran. The shipwreck, located at about 36° 47′0″ N, 53° 17′ 0″ E, emerged from beneath a sand dune north of Zaghemarz Village and was excavated in the course of two seasons. Excavations exposed the entire wooden structure of the hull, including the keel, endposts, framing timbers, hull planks, stringers, bulkheads, and the remains of two masts. Ropes, mats, wooden objects associated with rope ladders, and three baskets containing plant material were also retrieved near the bottom of the ship. Archaeobotanical investigations were conducted on wood samples and plant material stored in the baskets. The results of the wood analysis provided a first list of wood species used in constructing structural and non-structural elements of the vessel. Two main wood species, Scots Pine (Pinus sylvetris type) and Spruce/Larch (Picea/Larix type), were identified in the vessel’s construction. Additionally, a potential tool was made of poplar wood (Populus sp.). The plant material included fruits and seeds of six families, six genera, and five recognisable species, the bulk of which was represented by achenes of Fagopyrum esculentum Moench. The carbon-14 (14C) accelerator mass spectrometry (AMS) dates obtained from wood samples and short-lived finds were used to model the ship’s construction and wrecking dates. The radiocarbon dating and the available historical records suggest that the ship was constructed between the late eighteenth century and the first half of the nineteenth century and later repaired on multiple occasions.

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