Archaeologists in Sweden have uncovered new details about a remarkably well-preserved 500-year-old shipwreck that may be the oldest known medieval warship built in Sweden or Denmark. Their discoveries include evidence of the ship’s kitchen, rigging equipment and an unusual method of mast construction.
Marine archaeologists from Vrak Museum and Södertörn University made the discoveries during a recent underwater excavation near Häringe, south of Stockholm. The shipwreck, known as Vrak 5, dates to the 1480s and measures approximately 35 metres (115 feet) in length.
The vessel lies in Landfjärden, where several historic shipwrecks have been identified. Its age, size and state of preservation make it particularly important for understanding the development of shipbuilding in the Baltic Sea during the late Middle Ages.
The latest investigation focused on examining the ship’s construction and locating its galley, where meals would have been prepared for the crew. In findings announced last month, Vrak Museum confirmed that archaeologists had discovered bricks and mortar believed to be the remains of a stove or oven used for cooking aboard the vessel.
New discoveries aboard the medieval shipwreck
Photo courtesy Vrak Museum
The investigation forms part of a research project involving Matilda Jarl, a marine archaeologist and doctoral researcher at Södertörn University, examining food and living conditions aboard merchant and naval vessels in the Baltic Sea during the late medieval and early modern periods.
The archaeologists used a specialised pump to remove sediment and expose a small section of the wreck. An environmental curtain helped limit the spread of disturbed material, while the team documented the ship using 3D modelling.
The discovery of bricks and mortar provides evidence that the researchers may have located the remains of the galley. Such finds could help explain how sailors prepared food and sustained themselves during extended voyages.
The archaeologists also discovered numerous wooden blocks known as deadeyes, which were used with ropes to maintain tension in the ship’s rigging.
One of the most unusual findings concerns the ship’s mast. Rather than being made from a single piece of timber, it was constructed from nine joined sections held together by heavy ropes. According to the archaeologists, this particular construction had previously been known to them only through historical paintings.
The team also intends to analyse the clay used in the bricks to establish where they were manufactured. This could provide further clues about the vessel’s origins and movements.
A rare example of medieval shipbuilding
The Häringe wreck is particularly significant because it represents an important transition in northern European shipbuilding. The vessel was constructed using the carvel technique, in which wooden hull planks are fitted edge-to-edge to create a relatively smooth exterior. This differed from the clinker construction associated with Viking ships, where planks overlap one another.
Carvel construction helped make it possible to build larger and more powerful vessels. Archaeologists believe the Häringe ship may be the earliest known example of this type of vessel built in Sweden or Denmark.
“It is an unusually well-preserved example of a large ship from a period when new shipbuilding techniques changed Swedish shipping,” said Håkan Altrock, marine archaeologist at Vrak Museum. “We are very excited about what findings we can make during the investigations.”
Although the surviving wreck measures approximately 35 metres, Altrock suggested in international media reporting that the ship may originally have been 40 to 45 metres long.
Its preservation is another important feature. Much of the vessel remains buried beneath sediment, which has protected parts of its wooden construction for more than five centuries. Earlier investigations revealed that the sternpost and rudder remain upright, while substantial portions of the ship’s frames still rise above the seabed.
Archaeological investigations around Häringe between 2023 and 2025 documented six shipwrecks, four harbour installations and a fishing installation. Vrak 5 has emerged as one of the most historically significant discoveries in the area.
Was the ship destroyed in a medieval conflict?
One of the questions facing the archaeologists is how the vessel came to rest on the seabed. A possible explanation connects it to the political and military struggles between Sweden and Denmark at the beginning of the 16th century.
In 1501, King Hans of Denmark, who also ruled Sweden as part of the Kalmar Union, attacked and burned Häringe during his conflict with the Swedish regent Sten Sture the Elder. Researchers have suggested that Vrak 5 might have been sunk during this confrontation, although no direct connection has been established.
The ship’s precise origins also remain uncertain. Johan Rönnby, professor of marine archaeology at Södertörn University, told the Swedish newspaper Mitt i that its timber appears to have originated in Blekinge, a region of present-day Sweden that belonged to Denmark during the late Middle Ages. This raises the possibility that the vessel was Danish-built, although it does not establish who owned or operated it.
Both Hans and Sten Sture possessed large carvel-built ships, making it difficult to determine which side, if either, the wreck might have belonged to.
More Discoveries from Sweden’s Shipwrecks
Marco Alí, Wreck/SMTM
Vrak Museum is also preparing to present new research into another historic shipwreck discovered in the Stockholm archipelago. Known as the Osmundvraket, the vessel sank during the mid-16th century while carrying a cargo of iron.
Among the finds is a preserved barrel that once contained small pieces of iron known as osmunds, an important Swedish export. Researchers believe the barrel’s unusual construction may have been intended to prevent fraud involving its contents.
The research will be presented later this month, alongside the book Shipwrecks and the Baltic Metal Trade: Metal Production and Trading Nodes 13th–17th Century, which examines metal production and trade networks in the Baltic region during the medieval and early modern periods.
New clues to medieval seafaring
For the archaeologists, the importance of Vrak 5 extends beyond its possible military history. The remains offer an opportunity to investigate how large vessels were constructed, equipped and operated during a period of considerable change in maritime technology.
The discovery of the possible galley is especially valuable because it provides evidence of an aspect of medieval seafaring that is less well understood than ship construction or naval warfare.
Further analysis of the bricks, rigging equipment and unusual mast may help researchers reconstruct the ship’s history and determine more precisely where it was built.
Altrock emphasised the importance of continued investigations at Häringe, where several historic shipwrecks have been documented. “This is the most historically interesting wreck in the area,” he added. “Every time we can examine part of it, we have the opportunity to find new clues.”
Top Image: Illustration of the medieval shipwreck at Häringe, Sweden. Image: Vrak / SMMTF
Archaeologists in Sweden have uncovered new details about a remarkably well-preserved 500-year-old shipwreck that may be the oldest known medieval warship built in Sweden or Denmark. Their discoveries include evidence of the ship’s kitchen, rigging equipment and an unusual method of mast construction.
Marine archaeologists from Vrak Museum and Södertörn University made the discoveries during a recent underwater excavation near Häringe, south of Stockholm. The shipwreck, known as Vrak 5, dates to the 1480s and measures approximately 35 metres (115 feet) in length.
The vessel lies in Landfjärden, where several historic shipwrecks have been identified. Its age, size and state of preservation make it particularly important for understanding the development of shipbuilding in the Baltic Sea during the late Middle Ages.
The latest investigation focused on examining the ship’s construction and locating its galley, where meals would have been prepared for the crew. In findings announced last month, Vrak Museum confirmed that archaeologists had discovered bricks and mortar believed to be the remains of a stove or oven used for cooking aboard the vessel.
New discoveries aboard the medieval shipwreck
The investigation forms part of a research project involving Matilda Jarl, a marine archaeologist and doctoral researcher at Södertörn University, examining food and living conditions aboard merchant and naval vessels in the Baltic Sea during the late medieval and early modern periods.
The archaeologists used a specialised pump to remove sediment and expose a small section of the wreck. An environmental curtain helped limit the spread of disturbed material, while the team documented the ship using 3D modelling.
The discovery of bricks and mortar provides evidence that the researchers may have located the remains of the galley. Such finds could help explain how sailors prepared food and sustained themselves during extended voyages.
The archaeologists also discovered numerous wooden blocks known as deadeyes, which were used with ropes to maintain tension in the ship’s rigging.
One of the most unusual findings concerns the ship’s mast. Rather than being made from a single piece of timber, it was constructed from nine joined sections held together by heavy ropes. According to the archaeologists, this particular construction had previously been known to them only through historical paintings.
The team also intends to analyse the clay used in the bricks to establish where they were manufactured. This could provide further clues about the vessel’s origins and movements.
A rare example of medieval shipbuilding
The Häringe wreck is particularly significant because it represents an important transition in northern European shipbuilding. The vessel was constructed using the carvel technique, in which wooden hull planks are fitted edge-to-edge to create a relatively smooth exterior. This differed from the clinker construction associated with Viking ships, where planks overlap one another.
Carvel construction helped make it possible to build larger and more powerful vessels. Archaeologists believe the Häringe ship may be the earliest known example of this type of vessel built in Sweden or Denmark.
“It is an unusually well-preserved example of a large ship from a period when new shipbuilding techniques changed Swedish shipping,” said Håkan Altrock, marine archaeologist at Vrak Museum. “We are very excited about what findings we can make during the investigations.”
Although the surviving wreck measures approximately 35 metres, Altrock suggested in international media reporting that the ship may originally have been 40 to 45 metres long.
Its preservation is another important feature. Much of the vessel remains buried beneath sediment, which has protected parts of its wooden construction for more than five centuries. Earlier investigations revealed that the sternpost and rudder remain upright, while substantial portions of the ship’s frames still rise above the seabed.
Archaeological investigations around Häringe between 2023 and 2025 documented six shipwrecks, four harbour installations and a fishing installation. Vrak 5 has emerged as one of the most historically significant discoveries in the area.
Was the ship destroyed in a medieval conflict?
One of the questions facing the archaeologists is how the vessel came to rest on the seabed. A possible explanation connects it to the political and military struggles between Sweden and Denmark at the beginning of the 16th century.
In 1501, King Hans of Denmark, who also ruled Sweden as part of the Kalmar Union, attacked and burned Häringe during his conflict with the Swedish regent Sten Sture the Elder. Researchers have suggested that Vrak 5 might have been sunk during this confrontation, although no direct connection has been established.
V5 by SWEDISH NATIONAL MUSEUMS, MTF on Sketchfab
The ship’s precise origins also remain uncertain. Johan Rönnby, professor of marine archaeology at Södertörn University, told the Swedish newspaper Mitt i that its timber appears to have originated in Blekinge, a region of present-day Sweden that belonged to Denmark during the late Middle Ages. This raises the possibility that the vessel was Danish-built, although it does not establish who owned or operated it.
Both Hans and Sten Sture possessed large carvel-built ships, making it difficult to determine which side, if either, the wreck might have belonged to.
More Discoveries from Sweden’s Shipwrecks
Vrak Museum is also preparing to present new research into another historic shipwreck discovered in the Stockholm archipelago. Known as the Osmundvraket, the vessel sank during the mid-16th century while carrying a cargo of iron.
Among the finds is a preserved barrel that once contained small pieces of iron known as osmunds, an important Swedish export. Researchers believe the barrel’s unusual construction may have been intended to prevent fraud involving its contents.
The research will be presented later this month, alongside the book Shipwrecks and the Baltic Metal Trade: Metal Production and Trading Nodes 13th–17th Century, which examines metal production and trade networks in the Baltic region during the medieval and early modern periods.
New clues to medieval seafaring
For the archaeologists, the importance of Vrak 5 extends beyond its possible military history. The remains offer an opportunity to investigate how large vessels were constructed, equipped and operated during a period of considerable change in maritime technology.
The discovery of the possible galley is especially valuable because it provides evidence of an aspect of medieval seafaring that is less well understood than ship construction or naval warfare.
Further analysis of the bricks, rigging equipment and unusual mast may help researchers reconstruct the ship’s history and determine more precisely where it was built.
Altrock emphasised the importance of continued investigations at Häringe, where several historic shipwrecks have been documented. “This is the most historically interesting wreck in the area,” he added. “Every time we can examine part of it, we have the opportunity to find new clues.”
Top Image: Illustration of the medieval shipwreck at Häringe, Sweden. Image: Vrak / SMMTF
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