Fragment of a wooden boat found and excavated in Świnoujście

During the construction of the gas port in Świnoujście, sapper divers unearthed an oak fragment of the bow section of an unspecified vessel. The find is very interesting, as preliminary examination could not indicate the type of the boat or the approximate date of its sinking.

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The finding was reported to the media by Paulina Kubacka of the Voivodeship Historic Preservation Office in Szczecin.

The artefact is 1.5m long, and is the so-called prow, i.e. a beam crowning the bow of the boat. The discovery, at a depth of about 7m, was made by sapper divers during demining of the area for the construction of the Gazoport. They immediately informed archaeologists about their discovery.

The boat element has been taken to the National Museum in Szczecin, where it will be secured and subjected to further, more detailed research to establish its origin and age.

“This is a very valuable find. It’s not often that you find elements of old wooden boats,” – Kubacka said.

Such situations are not uncommon, the sea likes to discover a wreck from time to time, igniting human curiosity.

As she reported, the fragment is made of oak, a tree that was highly valued in the past, even to the extent that wrecked boats were extracted and the wood from them was used to create subsequent structures.

“The boat fragment found does not resemble any bow boats we know. It differs from those of Viking or early medieval Slavic boats. Once the age of the find is established, it will be easier to determine the type and place of origin of the boat” – adds Kubacka

The excavated fragment is to be tested with the carbon isotope C14, by specialists in dendrochronology, in order to determine the age of the object.

For our part, we would like to thank our reader Remek R, for sending us information about this find and we hope that there will be more situations like this!

Source: www.pap.pl
Photo: gs24.pl