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A group of divers recently stumbled upon a well-preserved 19th-century shipwreck near the Swedish coast, brimming with historical treasures including at least 100 bottles of champagne. Found approximately 20 nautical miles off Sweden in the Baltic Sea by Polish divers from Baltictech, the vessel was notably filled with not just champagne but also wine, porcelain, and uniquely significant mineral water in clay bottles.
Baltictech’s diver Tomasz Stachura highlighted in a recent press release that while the discovery of abundant champagne was remarkable, it was actually the mineral water that caught the team’s attention. This mineral water, once reserved primarily for royal consumption in the 19th century, was so valued that its transport involved police escorts.
Historical analysis revealed that the mineral water bore the stamp of the German brand Selters, dating it between 1850 and 1867. Stachura noted ongoing communications with the still-active brand and the still-operational pottery factory that bottled the water to unearth more insights.
The shipwreck initially detected on July 11 through sonar was thought to be a mere fishing boat. Despite initial hesitations due to fatigue from a prior dive that day, divers Marek Cacaj and Pawel Truszynski elected to investigate, leading to the noteworthy find.
As of now, the ship remains on the seabed in international waters. Stachura and his team are working in collaboration with the Marie-Stella-Maris Foundation, Södertörn University, and Professor Johan Rönnby, who directs underwater archaeological research in Sweden, to further explore and study the wreck.