A shipwreck believed to be from the mid-1800s has been found off Öland – filled with champagne bottles and soda water, several media outlets report.
It was last week that the wreck was discovered south of Öland by the Polish diving group Baltitech.
To locate the wreck, the divers had the help of Öland native Erik Bjurström. They found approximately one hundred seemingly intact champagne bottles on board, he tells Barometern. Similar finds have previously been auctioned off in England for around 30,000 kronor per bottle.
Soda water in clay bottles was also found. The technique for carbonating water was developed at the end of the 1700s and was then an expensive product.
It's an incredibly sensational find, says Erik Bjurström.
"A frozen moment"
The company that produced the soda water still exists and it is after contact with them that the cargo is estimated to be from 1860.
Besides the bottles, intact porcelain and wine were discovered.
The ship seems to be completely untouched and very little of the wreck has been examined yet, says archaeology professor Johan Rönnby, who was the divers' intermediary with Swedish authorities, to Dagens Nyheter.
It's a bit like a frozen moment from the 1850s lying there on the bottom, says Rönnby, who is the head of the maritime archaeological research institute Maris.
Ancient relic or not?
The County Administrative Board in Kalmar County is currently investigating whether the wreck should be considered an ancient relic.
Shipwrecks that sank before 1850 within Swedish territorial waters are considered ancient relics and may therefore not be damaged or moved. Violations of the law can result in fines or imprisonment.
Wrecks that are younger than 1850 can also be granted the status of ancient relic if they are deemed to have historical value.
