Archaeologists just found the largest and most advanced Medieval cargo ship ever...At 91 feet long and 300 tons, the Svælget 2 is the largest medieval cog ever found.

The Viking Ship Museum in Denmark recently announced an unprecedented discovery in the Øresund Strait: the world’s largest and most advanced medieval cargo ship ever found.

Hailed as “a milestone in maritime archaeology,” the discovery occurred while divers were investigating the seabed in the Sound, in anticipation of Copenhagen’s new Lynetteholm district, and stumbled upon a record-breaking cog buried beneath centuries of sand and silt.

Found approximately 43 feet deep, the precious wreckage escaped destructive forces, resulting in an extraordinary state of preservation that provided archaeologists with a rare, close-up look at never-before-seen details.

“It is extraordinary to have so many parts of the rigging,” noted the researchers.

Its sheer size and remarkable condition turned the excavation into a massive undertaking that required 289 dives and more than two and a half years to complete, according to Arkeonews. Now, the Viking Ship Museum has come forward, brimming with praise and insights into one of the medieval world’s most impressive vessels.

A groundbreaking cargo ship Named Svælget 2, this medieval cargo ship would have sailed the seas of Northern Europe with the astounding capacity to carry an immense 300-ton load with only a minimal crew.

Made of Polish and Danish wood, the vessel was described by the Viking Ship Museum in a press release as the “super ship” of the Middle Ages, measuring approximately 91 feet long, 30 feet wide, and 20 feet high.

Dendrochronological analysis revealed that Svælget 2 was built around 1410 using timber originating from Poland and the Netherlands. This indicated to archaeologists that while the frames were cut at the building site, shipbuilders imported other primary materials. So, researchers were impressed to discover that such large quantities of wood were moved across Europe.

In fact, this was the major insight archaeologists gleaned: the cog reflected the existence of a robust, complex trade network that the ship itself helped make possible. In a press release, the Museum called it “the backbone of medieval trade” because it could travel long distances and navigate treacherous waters without a large crew, making it an efficient, low-cost trading vessel.

“It is clear evidence that everyday goods were traded. Shipbuilders went as big as possible to transport bulky cargo – salt, timber, bricks or basic food items,” says Otto Uldum, head archaeologist, in a press release.

The cog was a trailblazer The ship marked a distinct shift in commerce when the goods exchanged were no longer just luxury items but everyday commodities too. The vessel literally expanded trade by cutting unnecessary costs and carrying heavy loads across Northern Europe.

Due to its excellent state of preservation, archaeologists recovered the ship’s hull, which is a rare find. Along the hull were remnants of the ship’s forecastle and aftcastle, which provided shelter for the crew. Until now, archaeologists could not confirm that these “castles” even existed on such ships.

A major surprise was the discovery of a brick-built galley, the earliest example of its kind ever found in Danish waters. This meant the crew could cook over an open fire in “remarkable comfort.” Besides, they found shoes, a comb, a cooking pot, and a wooden tray, as per Arkeonews.

All these extraordinary finds opened up a unique vantage point into daily life on board a groundbreaking cargo ship that changed the face of trade in Northern Europe. It signaled an economic boom in the region as they had the finances to build a vessel to rule the seas.

I did a bit of research and found this. Fascinating shipbuilding info.

By the 14th and 15th centuries, the Netherlands had experienced extensive deforestation due to rapid population growth, agricultural expansion, urban construction, and the demands of a burgeoning shipbuilding industry. The region, being densely populated and low-lying, had limited old-growth forests to begin with, and what remained couldn't supply the volume or size of timbers needed for large vessels like cogs, which required hundreds (sometimes thousands) of mature oak trees per ship.

Shipbuilding boomed under the influence of the Hanseatic League, a powerful trade confederation that included Dutch cities like Amsterdam and Rotterdam. This league's maritime activities amplified demand, making local wood insufficient. Early forest protection regulations in Western Europe further restricted domestic harvesting, pushing builders toward imports.

Poland (and the broader Baltic region, including Prussian territories under the Teutonic Order) had vast, untapped oak forests that produced timber in surplus. This wood was exported in massive quantities via rivers like the Vistula and through Baltic ports such as Danzig, facilitated by the Hanseatic trade routes.

Transportation was relatively efficient and cost-effective for the era: Timber was floated down rivers, loaded onto ships, and sailed to Dutch ports. Despite the distance (around 800–900 nautical miles from Danzig to Rotterdam), bulk shipping kept costs manageable compared to overland sourcing from elsewhere in Europe.

Not all oaks are equal for shipbuilding, and Polish oak from the Baltic stood out for its quality, which local Dutch wood often couldn't match consistently. Grown in a colder, continental climate, these trees developed slower, resulting in denser wood with tighter growth rings. This made it stronger, more durable, and better resistant to rot, warping, and marine borers—critical for hull planks, frames, and keels exposed to saltwater.

Baltic oaks were often taller and straighter, yielding longer, defect-free timbers ideal for specialized ship components like curved knees (for structural support) and straight planks. In contrast, Dutch oaks from warmer, wetter conditions grew faster but produced softer, less resilient wood prone to imperfections.

For the Svælget 2, the imported Polish timbers were used for primary structural elements, while some local wood handled secondary parts cut on-site, optimizing for both quality and logistics.

Importing Polish lumber was a practical necessity driven by scarcity and superior material properties, enabled by thriving medieval trade systems. This pattern continued into later centuries, helping the Dutch build one of Europe's most formidable fleets.

Family side note...my German grandfather married a Danziger woman in Danzig around 1905. So I've got family connections there going back to the Hanseatic League!

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.