Stuck in the pipe! Sunken 18th century ship found at sea
Published 26 January, 2009, 22:30
A sunken ship that dates back three centuries has been discovered during the seabed survey for the Nordstream gas pipeline project.
Scientists have called for it to be saved before it’s destroyed by fresh construction work.
The ship was discovered in the Gulf of Finland near the island of Gogland, along with the remains of five other ships from a Russian fleet which sank after a storm in 1713.
“It’s a so-called tjalk, a military transport ship built to Dutch blueprints,” said Andrey Lukoshkov, the consultant for the project.
“Russia’s underwater legacy, which is aimed at preserving valuable artifacts discovered under the sea. It was the time when Sweden and Russia fought each other over supremacy in Europe’s North,” he told a local TV station in St Petersburg.
The small 16 metre-long ship lies 54 metres deep and was almost unaffected by the ravages of time. The captain’s cabin still has his personal possessions and tableware.
The tjalk is one of the few remaining vessels from the period when Tsar Peter the Great was creating Russia’s navy. Scientists hope to find funding to safely raise it to the surface and move it to a naval museum in Kaliningrad.
It must be done before the construction of the pipeline starts on the site, which would be certain to damage it.
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