Photo courtesy Landesamt für Denkmalpflege (LAD)
Posted on 09/28/2026 9:02:44 PM PDT by SunkenCiv
Parts of a medieval ship have been discovered in an unlikely place: forming the ceiling of a 13th-century cellar in southern Germany. Researchers say the unusually well-preserved timbers could provide new insights into medieval shipbuilding on Lake Constance.
The discovery was made during an architectural investigation of a building on Konradigasse in Konstanz, a southern German city on the shores of Lake Constance. Researchers from the State Office for Monument Preservation (LAD) found that timbers reused to construct the ceiling of a cellar dating to 1244 had originally belonged to a ship...
Once the vessel was no longer needed for sailing, substantial portions of its timber were apparently repurposed as building material rather than discarded.
Preliminary analysis suggests that the timbers came from a flat-bottomed sailing cargo vessel. Researchers have compared its construction with other vessels known from the Lake Constance region, including the 14th-century Kippenhorn wreck near Immenstaad...
The results of the dendrochronological analysis are expected in the coming weeks.
(Excerpt) Read more at medievalists.net ...
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Thanks for the link!
I'll bet they are!
“Once the vessel was no longer needed for sailing, substantial portions of its timber were apparently repurposed as building material rather than discarded. “
As you well know, that was SOP for all building materials, especially stone. That’s why so many old monuments and buildings disappeared throughout history.
Somewhere around here there at least used to be a topic about the barn roof said to be built out of the Mayflower.
My home’s foundation is made out of steel beams I salvaged from the Titanic.
For the life of me, I cannot figure out why the house is sinking into the ground. . .
Haven't found the FR article yet, but there is plenty of articles about the barn, when this estate went up for sale.
Our family lore is that there had been a trunk from Mayflower in one of our two adjoining homesteads in western NY. Mom and my aunts said they knew it, but it disappeared 30+ years ago. (My cousin’s thieving lying lazy son stayed there for a while and many things disappeared.) I am skeptical. Too much time has passed, and the distance from New England is so far.
substantial portions of its timber were apparently repurposed as building material
What?! Those crafty devils...
Proving once again why we bees at the top of the food chain... I mean, whoda thunk?
I believe POTUS desk (the Resolute desk) was made from a British ship the HMS Resolute. I think they make two of them, maybe more. POTUS’ desk was a gift from GB.
Ship in the ceiling !??
Sheeesh.... that must have been one heck of a high tide !
My 123-year-old home (as well as my neighbor’s home) has some girders in the crawl harvested from some old ships sunk off Core Banks (Cape Lookout, NC).
When you posted the title I thought of the Mayflower barn. I remember it from a Paul Harvey Rest of the Story episode.
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