A sunken ship reveals life in Europe 400 years in the past – DW – 7/5/2023

In November 2021, archaeologists started inspecting the stays of a shipwreck off the northern coast of Germany. On Monday (3/7) the crew revealed to the general public their findings on what turned out to be a Seventeenth-century service provider ship belonging to the Hanseatic League.

After an intensive salvage mission – the primary profitable industrial craft of the interval within the area – the undersea treasure is cleaned and documented, and contains ceramic objects and elements of marine {hardware}, together with 180 items of wooden. The strict is effectively preserved.

“We discovered greater than we anticipated and might infer so much in regards to the structure and the gear on board,” undertaking supervisor Felix Roche stated at a information convention.

The discover is particularly vital for illustrating the each day lifetime of time. Whereas many warships have already been rescued within the Baltic Sea, this service provider ship presents glimpses into civilian life. Among the many items is a liquor decanter with the phrase “London” engraved on it. Animal bones and offal on the pottery items point out what was eaten on board.

Again to the water for posterity

The wreckage was discovered at a depth of 11 meters within the Trave River, close to the port metropolis of Lübeck, on the Baltic Sea in northeastern Germany. A routine measurement revealed a vessel about 25 meters lengthy and 6 meters extensive.

Consultants conclude that he was on his technique to Scandinavia. Black marks on a big portion of the wooden indicated a hearth on board as a attainable explanation for the sinking. The cargo can also have contributed to the catastrophe: 150 barrels of quicklime (calcium oxide), a extremely inflammable substance used within the Seventeenth century as a constructing materials.

The finds will now endure 3D monitoring in a warehouse in Lübeck, and are stored in tanks full of water, “in any other case they’ll shortly dry out and decompose,” defined Roche.

In response to town’s tradition officer, Monica Frank, it’s attainable that the 400-year-old gadgets may very well be immersed once more after research, as a way to protect them for future generations.

Based within the late twelfth century, the Hanseatic League was a commerce and protection union of cities and service provider guilds within the Baltic Sea area and north, stretching from the Netherlands to Poland, and additional north alongside the coast of Scandinavia.