Maxim Menshikov, archaeologist and the expedition director, inspects the finds discovered by a diver at the underwater site of what is identified by researchers as a submerged medieval city on the bed of Lake Issyk-Kul near the settlement of Toru-Aygyr in Kyrgyzstan on September 23, 2026. (Photo by Vyacheslav OSELEDKO / AFP via Getty Images)