The ships were identified and filmed at a depth of 150 meters by a submarine equipped with an advanced camera.
On the bottom of the Baltic Sea they find three “ghost” ships that are more than 300 years old
A group of Danish archaeologists have discovered the remains of three nearly 300-year-old ships lying in good condition in the depths of the Baltic Sea, the West Jutland Maritime War Museum in Denmark has reported.
The discovery came during an expedition conducted last October, which also included specialists from the National Museum of the Baltic Sea and the Danish company JD-Contractor, which provided the SIMA seagoing vessel and underwater robots with advanced technology.
According to Maritime War Museum director Gert Normann Andersen, the group, which consisted of 27 expedition members, set out with the idea of studying the remains of shipwrecks, as well as other materials on the bottom of the sea. However, he stressed that they did not expect to find these “ghost” ships so well preserved. “The wreck was almost as good as it was when it sank hundreds of years ago,” he said.
The ships were identified and filmed as the remotely operated underwater vehicle, equipped with an advanced camera, was submerged to a depth of 150 metres. They are also known to be located 46.3 kilometers east of the Swedish island of Gotland, out of reach of modern fishing boats.
Experts believe that two of the ships found are Dutch merchant galleys, while the remaining, the largest of the three, is a Scandinavian ship. In addition, they explained that due to the shape of their hulls, it is possible that these damaged ships date from the 18th and 19th centuries.
David Gregory, a researcher at the National Museum, stated that “the Baltic Sea is among the places believed to harbor the best preserved wooden shipwrecks in the world”. This is due to the very acidic and low-oxygen environmental conditions on the sea floor, which prevent worms and other microorganisms from destroying the wood.
Andersen pointed out that in contrast, “in the North Sea all shipwrecks are broken up in record time” as “worms eat all the wood and wave action and heavy tackle fishing do the rest.
When deciding whether to leave this shipwreck at the site, Gregory said that under both the Danish Museums Act and the European Convention for the Protection of Archaeological Heritage, all discoveries should preferably remain “in situ”. This measure is mainly due to the high costs that would entail their salvage and preservation. The Danish Palaces and Culture Agency estimates that there are around 20,000 shipwrecks in Danish waters.