'Fantastic' sea monster figurehead found in 15th century shipwreck

The wreck of the Gribshunden, a vessel thought to have sunk  in 1495 in waters off Sweden, is one of the best-preserved of its kind.

|
Johan Ronnby/Sodertorn University via TT News Agency/Reuters
A diver measures the figurehead of the Danish 15th century ship 'Gribshunden' in this photo made available June 16, 2015. Gribshunden, probably the world's best preserved late medieval ship and a contemporary of Columbus's Santa Maria, burned and sank off Ronneby, Southern Sweden, sometime after 1495. The 100-ft long shipwreck will be scanned, photographed and measured in situ prior to any excavation.

A wooden figurehead of a sea monster with ears like a lion and a crocodile's jaw was carefully lifted from the sea in southern Sweden on Tuesday by divers bringing up treasures from the wreck of a 15th-century Danish warship.

The figurehead came from the wreck of the Gribshunden, which is believed to have sunk in 1495 after it caught fire on its way from Copenhagen to Kalmar on Sweden's east coast.

Although the hull suffered extensive damage, the remaining bits make it one of the best preserved wrecks of its kind, dating from roughly the same period as Christopher Columbus's flagship, the Santa Maria.

"Last time it looked at the world, Leonardo da Vinci and Christopher Columbus were still living," Johan Ronnby, professor of marine archaeology at Sodertorn University, said as the ferocious-looking figurehead, which was intended to scare the enemy, was brought to the surface.

"It's a monster. It's a sea monster and we have to discuss what kind of animal it is. I think it's some kind of fantasy animal - a dragon with lion ears and crocodile-like mouth," Ronnby said.

"I'm amazed, We knew that it should be a fantastic figure, but it was over our expectations when we saw it now. It's a fantastic figure, unique in the world."

Researchers are hoping to bring more of the wreck to the surface in future. They say the hulk is well preserved, because sea worms do not like the brackish waters of the Baltic Sea.

"The ship comes from a time just when Columbus was sailing across the ocean and Vasco da Gama also went to India, and this is the same period and we can learn very much about how the ships were made, how they were constructed since there are no ships left from this time," said Marcus Sandekjer, head of the Blekinge Museum, which is involved in the salvage effort.

"It's unique in the world and I think there are going to be more excavations around here and we're going to find some more unique objects. But this ... today is just fantastic."

(Writing by Michael Roddy; Editing by Larry King)

You've read  of  free articles. Subscribe to continue.
Real news can be honest, hopeful, credible, constructive.
What is the Monitor difference? Tackling the tough headlines – with humanity. Listening to sources – with respect. Seeing the story that others are missing by reporting what so often gets overlooked: the values that connect us. That’s Monitor reporting – news that changes how you see the world.

Dear Reader,

About a year ago, I happened upon this statement about the Monitor in the Harvard Business Review – under the charming heading of “do things that don’t interest you”:

“Many things that end up” being meaningful, writes social scientist Joseph Grenny, “have come from conference workshops, articles, or online videos that began as a chore and ended with an insight. My work in Kenya, for example, was heavily influenced by a Christian Science Monitor article I had forced myself to read 10 years earlier. Sometimes, we call things ‘boring’ simply because they lie outside the box we are currently in.”

If you were to come up with a punchline to a joke about the Monitor, that would probably be it. We’re seen as being global, fair, insightful, and perhaps a bit too earnest. We’re the bran muffin of journalism.

But you know what? We change lives. And I’m going to argue that we change lives precisely because we force open that too-small box that most human beings think they live in.

The Monitor is a peculiar little publication that’s hard for the world to figure out. We’re run by a church, but we’re not only for church members and we’re not about converting people. We’re known as being fair even as the world becomes as polarized as at any time since the newspaper’s founding in 1908.

We have a mission beyond circulation, we want to bridge divides. We’re about kicking down the door of thought everywhere and saying, “You are bigger and more capable than you realize. And we can prove it.”

If you’re looking for bran muffin journalism, you can subscribe to the Monitor for $15. You’ll get the Monitor Weekly magazine, the Monitor Daily email, and unlimited access to CSMonitor.com.

QR Code to 'Fantastic' sea monster figurehead found in 15th century shipwreck
Read this article in
https://www.csmonitor.com/Science/2015/0813/Fantastic-sea-monster-figurehead-found-in-15th-century-shipwreck
QR Code to Subscription page
Start your subscription today
https://www.csmonitor.com/subscribe