The Phoenicia Project

Hi my name is Boyd Tuttle,

I am a crewmember of the "Phoenicians Before Columbus " expedition. Click above to see a two-minute video of this incredible expedition led by Philip Beale of the U.K..   

News Flash Update: At noon on Dec 31st (last day of 2019) the Phoenicia arrived safely into harbor at Santo Domingo, Dominican Republic! This now completes the first stage of the expedition's landing. Essentially crowning the claim that ancient Phoenician ships were capable of reaching the New World in a 600 B.C. sailing vessel.  Absolutely history-changing and astounding!

Philip Beale is both expedition leader and captain of the ship, Phoenicia. He has spent more than 10 years of his life working on, preparing for, and executing two historic expeditions.  Beale has now essentially completed what many said was impossible and against all odds.  After ten years his firm, unswerving persistence and dogged determination has brought the Phoenicia safely into the New World on nothing more than sail, wind, current and compass. Mission accomplished!  Congratulations Mr. Beale.  
So why a GoFundMe? If the mission was achieved, then what? To date, funding for this expedition has come in from a variety of sources, mostly from the U.K., Tunisia and Lebanon, but to date, few Americans or American institutions have contributed in any significant way to this history-altering mission.  Notwithstanding the fact that (if my research thesis is correct) Americans have perhaps more than anyone to learn, benefit, gain, and take away from his remarkable voyage of discovery than anyone.

If you are not familiar with the Phoenicians Before Columbus mission, please visit: www.PhoeniciansBeforeColumbus.com  website. You can learn more about the goals and objectives of this remarkable and history-changing expedition.  According to some, this expedition is more significant than the death-defying Kon-Tiki or Ra I and Ra II expeditions. The Phoenicians Before Columbus expedition is demonstrating that near eastern mariners and traders were fully capable of reaching the New World more than 2,000 years before Columbus' epic voyage.  We are now witnessing history being re-examined right right before our eyes! 
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News Flash Update:  (Jan 24, 2020) The expedition will sail into the Coral Ridge Yacht Club in Fort Lauderdale on February 4th at 12:00 noon. We are still working out all the logistics, but stand by for news!
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As one American on board, I found myself answering the oft-repeated question of my fellow crewmates, "why are you here?" by saying, "because I hold the view that ancient near easterners were, in fact, crossing the ocean to the New World around 600 B.C. and it was not enough for me to read about it, I wanted to experience the same thing the ancients did.  Now, with the voyage essentially completed, I and everyone else, can say, with confidence that Philip's theory has been realized. 

Captain Beale, asked me to prepare the USA landing site and ceremonies. With the ship now just a few hundred miles off our southern coast, this urgency grows daily.  Mayors, City Managers, University history professors, museum curators and media have been notified about the upcoming landing and we are gratified to see that they are planning to attend.  

For now the need is to cover expenses dealing with a formal awards ceremony that will bring in dignitaries, civic leaders and the media to acknowledge and honor the historic achievement. We are hoping to show our international captain and crew that Americans know how to welcome our adventurer friends. Captain Beale has single-handedly done nearly all of the heavy lifting for more than a decade, meanwhile, the world is all the richer for it.

Some expenses that we will use the funds for:
- Customized Crew Uniform Shirts & Hats
- Dry dock fees
- Transport fees
- Winterizing the boat
- Dry storage fees
- Media Events, awards ceremonies, press kits, boat repairs
- Any remaining funds will go toward museum-quality preservation, restoration and preparation

Please contact me directly if you need documentation for the tax deductibility of your donation.  (801) [phone redacted].

We are excited to see the ship complete the voyage by ultimately reaching the USA mainland. 

Once you select "Donate Now,"  you will have the option of donating "anonymously" or "publicly." 

Below you can see the ship's course as of 12-31-19:(Or click this link to see an update)
As you study the above map, you are literally looking at the same path that the natural wind and currents would have carried an identical Phoenician vessel some three thousand years ago. Phoenician ships were of the type that sail before the wind, no keel. They do not have keels and cannot tack against or crosswise to the wind as later ships would do.  So its path across the Atlantic would have been almost exactly what you see here, in line with the North Atlantic Equatorial current which flows in a clockwise pattern, eventually bringing vessels full circle to the north and over returning them once again to their starting position in the Mediterranean.  Note, Phoenician boats typically had oars which would have been used to cover short distances and which allowed them to maneuver out of dead-spots and to get around in tight places such as harbors, etc.