Two shipwrecks, including one possibly dating back to the 14th century, have been found at the bottom of the sea as part of a project to open a new maritime museum in Stockholm.
The cog, from the 14th or 15th century [Credit: Mikael Fredholm/Swedish National Maritime Museums] |
Historic vessels are a fascinating, but not unusual, discovery in the Baltic Sea's shipwreck graveyard (there are at least 100 intact ships on the Baltic seabed). The water is too brackish for shipworm, which means that a huge number of wooden ships have survived on the bottom of the sea with almost intact hulls for centuries.
Another picture of the cog [Credit: Mikael Fredholm/Swedish National Maritime Museums] |
"My pulse went up when I realized what we were looking at – I have never seen such well-preserved shipwrecks," said maritime archaeologist Jim Hansson in a statement.
Barrels containing osmond iron and tar [Credit: Jim Hansson/Swedish National Maritime Museums] |
The planned maritime archaeological museum 'Treasures of the Baltic Sea' is scheduled to open in 2020 next to the Vasa Museum on Djurgården island in Stockholm. But it is unlikely that any new wrecks found will be turned into a new version of world-famous warship Vasa, which sank in 1628 and was salvaged in 1961.
A 3D image of the cog wreck [Credit: Swedish National Maritime Museums] |
"Instead, visitors will get to join dives deep into the secrets of the Baltic Sea with the help of digital technology," she said.
Author: Emma Löfgren | Source: The Local [January 28, 2018]