According to the Swedish Shipwreck Museum, wood samples and technical data confirm that the wreck is the warship Äpplet, completed in 1629.
18:24•Updated 18:41
The wreck found on the seabed near Vaxholm has been confirmed as a sister ship of the Vasa ship that sank in 1628, says the Swedish shipwreck museum Vrak.
The museum’s marine archaeologists have explored the straits surrounding Vaxholm in the Stockholm archipelago on several occasions.
In December of last year, a very large wreck was found. The ship’s sides had partially collapsed, but the hull was otherwise preserved up to the second gun deck, the wreck museum Vrak says on their website (you will switch to another service).
The ship therefore had two gun mounts like the Vasa ship.
In the spring, more detailed dives were carried out on the wreck and wood samples were collected from it, among other things. Details were found on the wreck that, according to the museum, have previously only been seen on the Vasa ship.
It was also revealed that the ship had used oak felled from the same area as the Vasa ship.
Was sunk to the bottom on purpose
Äpplet is almost identical, but a good meter wider than the flagship Vasa, which sank on its maiden voyage, says Swedish public broadcasting company SVT (you switch to another service).
Äpplet was completed in 1629, i.e. a year later than Vasa. Although the Äpplet was built as a warship, it was used as a transport ship in the Baltic Sea Gustav II Adolf in great power Sweden.
After the ship served for 30 years, Sweden tried to sell it with little success. The ship was finally sunk in the Vaxholm straits, SVT says. At that time, according to SVT, ships were deliberately sunk in the straits to prevent enemy fleets from entering Stockholm.
In 2019, two smaller ships were found in the straits, which were initially believed to be the now discovered Äpplet.
Story corrected 24.10 at 6:40 p.m.: Corrected the incorrect year of the ship’s completion date at the end of the story. Äpplet was completed in 1629.