Parts of a medieval ship have been discovered in an unlikely place: forming the ceiling of a 13th-century cellar in southern Germany. Researchers say the unusually well-preserved timbers could provide new insights into medieval shipbuilding on Lake Constance.
The discovery was made during an architectural investigation of a building on Konradigasse in Konstanz, a southern German city on the shores of Lake Constance. Researchers from the State Office for Monument Preservation (LAD) found that timbers reused to construct the ceiling of a cellar dating to 1244 had originally belonged to a ship.
“At first, all that was clear was that the planks had been reused. The fact that they were originally part of a ship was the complete surprise,” said Dr. Aline Kottmann, a specialist in medieval archaeology at the LAD.
The ceiling covers more than 25 square metres and incorporates at least 19 planks from the vessel. Researchers identified them as ship timbers from features including characteristic wooden pegs, rows of pegs and the shapes of the planks.
The discovery offers an unusual example of medieval recycling. Once the vessel was no longer needed for sailing, substantial portions of its timber were apparently repurposed as building material rather than discarded.
A medieval cargo ship
Photo courtesy Landesamt für Denkmalpflege (LAD)
Preliminary analysis suggests that the timbers came from a flat-bottomed sailing cargo vessel. Researchers have compared its construction with other vessels known from the Lake Constance region, including the 14th-century Kippenhorn wreck near Immenstaad.
The Konstanz discovery could be particularly valuable because parts of the vessel may preserve features that are poorly understood from other surviving medieval ships.
“Should parts of the side planking actually have survived, new insights into the construction of medieval ships and the design of the transition between the bottom and side planks would be possible,” explained Alexandra Ulisch, a member of the LAD’s “Wrecks and Deep Sea” project.
Photo courtesy Landesamt für Denkmalpflege (LAD)
Several repairs made during the working life of the ship can still be seen. Damaged portions of the planks were cut away and replaced with carefully fitted pieces of wood. Researchers have already identified at least four repairs, including a dovetail-shaped insert for which they know of no direct parallel in medieval shipbuilding on Lake Constance.
Even more remarkably, some of the planks remain connected in the same way they were when they formed part of the vessel.
“They are precisely cut to fit one another and, just as they were installed in the ship, are attached to the ceiling. As a result, the caulking, the sealant between the planks, has also been preserved in some places,” Ulisch said.
The surviving caulking is being analysed and could provide further information about medieval shipbuilding techniques.
From ship to cellar ceiling
Photo courtesy Landesamt für Denkmalpflege (LAD)
Reusing old ships as sources of timber was not unknown in the Middle Ages. What makes the Konstanz discovery exceptional, according to the researchers, is the quantity of the vessel that appears to have survived together.
“It is known that decommissioned ships were reused as building timber in the Middle Ages,” Ulisch explained. “Nevertheless, the find in Constance is something very special: Here, not just individual fragments, but an almost completely intact ship’s hull was used.”
Researchers returned to document the ceiling in mid-August, taking hundreds of photographs that will be digitally combined through structure-from-motion technology to produce a three-dimensional record of the surviving timbers.
Wood samples have also been collected for dendrochronological analysis. These could provide a more precise date for the trees used to construct the vessel and potentially reveal more about where its timber originated. The cellar itself dates to 1244, meaning that the ship had already been dismantled and reused by that point.
Photo courtesy Landesamt für Denkmalpflege (LAD)
For researchers, one of the greatest advantages of the discovery is simply its accessibility. Medieval shipwrecks surviving in Lake Constance are underwater and consequently difficult to investigate. The Konradigasse timbers can be examined much more easily.
“The find goes far beyond a chance discovery. It is a valuable testament to medieval shipbuilding technology and of particular importance for the maritime archaeology of the Lake Constance region,” Kottmann said.
The results of the dendrochronological analysis are expected in the coming weeks.
Parts of a medieval ship have been discovered in an unlikely place: forming the ceiling of a 13th-century cellar in southern Germany. Researchers say the unusually well-preserved timbers could provide new insights into medieval shipbuilding on Lake Constance.
The discovery was made during an architectural investigation of a building on Konradigasse in Konstanz, a southern German city on the shores of Lake Constance. Researchers from the State Office for Monument Preservation (LAD) found that timbers reused to construct the ceiling of a cellar dating to 1244 had originally belonged to a ship.
“At first, all that was clear was that the planks had been reused. The fact that they were originally part of a ship was the complete surprise,” said Dr. Aline Kottmann, a specialist in medieval archaeology at the LAD.
The ceiling covers more than 25 square metres and incorporates at least 19 planks from the vessel. Researchers identified them as ship timbers from features including characteristic wooden pegs, rows of pegs and the shapes of the planks.
The discovery offers an unusual example of medieval recycling. Once the vessel was no longer needed for sailing, substantial portions of its timber were apparently repurposed as building material rather than discarded.
A medieval cargo ship
Preliminary analysis suggests that the timbers came from a flat-bottomed sailing cargo vessel. Researchers have compared its construction with other vessels known from the Lake Constance region, including the 14th-century Kippenhorn wreck near Immenstaad.
The Konstanz discovery could be particularly valuable because parts of the vessel may preserve features that are poorly understood from other surviving medieval ships.
“Should parts of the side planking actually have survived, new insights into the construction of medieval ships and the design of the transition between the bottom and side planks would be possible,” explained Alexandra Ulisch, a member of the LAD’s “Wrecks and Deep Sea” project.
Several repairs made during the working life of the ship can still be seen. Damaged portions of the planks were cut away and replaced with carefully fitted pieces of wood. Researchers have already identified at least four repairs, including a dovetail-shaped insert for which they know of no direct parallel in medieval shipbuilding on Lake Constance.
Even more remarkably, some of the planks remain connected in the same way they were when they formed part of the vessel.
“They are precisely cut to fit one another and, just as they were installed in the ship, are attached to the ceiling. As a result, the caulking, the sealant between the planks, has also been preserved in some places,” Ulisch said.
The surviving caulking is being analysed and could provide further information about medieval shipbuilding techniques.
From ship to cellar ceiling
Reusing old ships as sources of timber was not unknown in the Middle Ages. What makes the Konstanz discovery exceptional, according to the researchers, is the quantity of the vessel that appears to have survived together.
“It is known that decommissioned ships were reused as building timber in the Middle Ages,” Ulisch explained. “Nevertheless, the find in Constance is something very special: Here, not just individual fragments, but an almost completely intact ship’s hull was used.”
Researchers returned to document the ceiling in mid-August, taking hundreds of photographs that will be digitally combined through structure-from-motion technology to produce a three-dimensional record of the surviving timbers.
Wood samples have also been collected for dendrochronological analysis. These could provide a more precise date for the trees used to construct the vessel and potentially reveal more about where its timber originated. The cellar itself dates to 1244, meaning that the ship had already been dismantled and reused by that point.
For researchers, one of the greatest advantages of the discovery is simply its accessibility. Medieval shipwrecks surviving in Lake Constance are underwater and consequently difficult to investigate. The Konradigasse timbers can be examined much more easily.
“The find goes far beyond a chance discovery. It is a valuable testament to medieval shipbuilding technology and of particular importance for the maritime archaeology of the Lake Constance region,” Kottmann said.
The results of the dendrochronological analysis are expected in the coming weeks.
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