Posted on 11/15/2007 5:23:01 PM PST by BGHater
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A near-intact shipwreck apparently dating from the 17th century has been found in the Baltic Sea, Swedish television has said. The discovery was made during filming for an under-water documentary series. Public service SVT television said the wreck could be from the same era as the famous Vasa warship, which sank on its maiden voyage in August 1628. The broadcaster said the Baltic's low oxygen content and low temperature had helped preserve the wreck.
SVT said the origins of the ship were unclear but its features resembled the work of Dutch ship-builders from the period. "Experts who have studied video of the ship conclude that it is probably the best-preserved ship ever seen from this period," the station said. A press release provided by SVT quoted marine archaeologist MR Manders as saying he was "overwhelmed" by the condition of the wreck. "You can hardly call this a shipwreck," he is quoted as saying. Mr Manders said the boat was likely to have been a trading vessel, 20-25m long, with two or perhaps three masts. Excellent visibility The location of the wreck, between the Swedish mainland and Latvia, had been pinpointed in 2003.
But it was only in May this year, during filming for The Wreck Divers documentary series, that full exploration and filming with a remotely-operated submarine took place. The programme's executive producer, Malcolm Dixelius, told the BBC the ship was found at a depth of 125m - offering "excellent" visibility. The relative lack of oxygen in the water and its low temperature meant the ship had been amazingly well-preserved, he said. SVT says the vessel probably dates from the same period as the Vasa warship, which was discovered in 1956 and brought to the surface. The museum where it is kept is now one of the main tourist attractions in Stockholm. SVT's The Wreck Divers programme is aired on Thursday. |
Cool. Thank You.
It’s just too bad we can’t submerge Hillery! in the
cold, oxygenless depths of the Baltic for say 200 years...
What did the Baltic ever do to you?
See would look the same
At a depth of 125 meters, it might be possible to salvage quite a bit of this “wreck”, but raising it from that depth may well be impossible...
I toured the Vase and it is simply amazing what they did (both in building her and in her recovery and preservation.)
On a similar note there is a British ship named “Bredalbane” that went down in the Canadian Arctic in 1850. The wreck is amazingly well preserved and can be visited via submarine for $10k/person.
yea, they just weren’t that good at sailing her.
So, fitting all that firepower on a fairly small platform, what did they expect?
Way cool!
State of the art technology always involves a certain amount of risk. Think of WW1 airplanes. As primitive as they seem now, they were the best in the world at the time, and were extremely dangerous to fly, just because the technology was new and untried.
bmflr
Its just too bad we cant submerge Hillery! in the cold, oxygenless depths of the Baltic for say 200 years...
...And risk someone finding her?
LOL
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Gods |
Thanks kitchen. Not too recent -- we're so desperate for topics, we're pingin' everything but the, uh, never mind... |
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Nearly 400 years underwater & its masts and bowsprit are still intact.
That’s amazing.
I think it’s a prop from a low-budget 50’s film by the famed Swedish director, Moos Moosen.
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