Divers, archaeologists, and other explorers have made hundreds of underwater discoveries such as submarines and sunken ships. A diving team recently discovered an ancient ship in the Baltic Sea.
The vessel was believed to from the Dutch Empire in the 17th century. Also known as a fluyt, the ship has three masts and was designed to carry cargo. There was also evidence that the ship had no gun attachments and was run by a small crew.
The fluyt's rigging system was unique, allowing the crew members to adjust the sails for maximum space and cutting down costs. The lightly constructed vessel was not designed for speed but was to carry cannons and ammunition during battles.
The Dutch Empire's Golden Age
At the time, the Dutch Empire ruled over Asia, Europe, parts of North America, New Zealand, and Tasmania. The 17th century was also known as the Dutch Golden Age, where the empire had established prominent trade posts around the world. Silk and textiles comprised the majority of their imports from the Mughal Empire in India.
The first vessel was built in 1595, allowing the Dutch Empire to dominate international maritime trade. Years later, the British adopted the vessel's design and modified it into a ship they called the East Indiaman.
The vessel was in almost-perfect condition and experts have not determined what caused it to sink to the bottom of the sea. It was discovered by a team from Badewanne, a non-profit organization of divers who voluntarily document shipwrecks.
Jouni Polkko, one of the divers said that the fluyt's hull remained intact. Since it sunk in the middle of the sea, it sunk in deep waters. Perhaps the vessel's capsized in a storm, or the pumps were stuck and the ship got too much water in because of a leak. Maybe the ship became unstable after the rigging became frozen, speculated the team.
The team shared that the only damage they observed may have been caused by trawler netting, or large fishing nets. The ship's holds were full, meaning that it could have been carrying silt that built up over 400 years.
Juha Flinkman, another diver from Badewanne, was surprised by their discovery. The fluyt ships 'were fundamental in the rise of the Dutch Republic into the economic superpower it was,' he shared.
The vessels were very efficient at the time. It was the same type of ship used by almost all the Dutch explorers such as Willem Barentsz, who traveled to the Arctic, and many others who went to Australia and Asia shared Juha.
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Conditions in the Baltic Sea
The team believes that the conditions in the Gulf of Finland are responsible for the vessel's structure having minimal damage. Jouni shared that the Baltic Sea is one of the rare places in the world 'where wooden wrecks can survive for centuries without being destroyed.'
The low salinity and temperatures throughout the year, as well as absolute darkness, are very slow processes in the Baltic Sea.
'Perhaps most importantly, wood-boring organisms such as shipworm cannot live in such environments. Even in temperate seas, all wooden wrecks vanish in decades, unless buried in sediments.'
The salinity of the entire Baltic Sea is good for preserving old vessels, he explained. When the sea is frozen during the winter, the 'ice cover stabilizes conditions even further.'
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