Pharaoh Necho II sponsored a voyage in ~600 BC to circumnavigate Africa. Egypt was working on a canal to connect the Nile & Red Sea & strengthen connections with Punt/Ethiopia. The only evidence for this voyage is a short summary in Herodotus. Herodotus related that the Phoenicians, in service of Necho, spent three years rounding the continent. An astounding feat that would not be emulated until Vasco de Gama sailed around Africa in 1493 AD.
Herodotus doubts this story, saying the Phoenicians claimed the Sun was at their right as they sailed south. This seemed ridiculous to Herodotus but supports that the voyage happened as this only occurs south of the Equator & would’ve happened to the explorers!
From 2008-2010 a crew of researchers crewed a replica of a Phoenician ship from the 6th c. BC and sailed it around Africa, proving it was possible and further supporting the probability that this voyage occurred, a position held by many scholars today.
Unfortunately, the first-hand accounts of these voyages haven’t survived, hampering our ability to understand these fascinating adventures & intrepid explorers. The little evidence we have exists in brief summaries from secondary sources & adds to the mystery of these odysseys.
Later exploration, notably in the 15th-16th centuries, often overshadow that of the Classical World. Regrettable, as these voyages helped build a global system & even with little documentation, stir the imagination with images of brave men plunging themselves into the unknown.