For five centuries the enormous ship lay preserved in its thick shroud of mud and silt deep in the banks of the River Usk.
Finally, two years into the current millennium, its 82ft timber frame was uncovered as a new orchestra pit was being dug for a riverside arts centre in Newport, South Wales.
As archeologists scrubbed away centuries of muck with toothbrushes, it became clear that the Newport Ship was the oldest example of ship-building yet discovered.
