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UPDATED 22 APRIL, 2024 - 17:54 ANCIENT-ORIGINS
Medieval Weapons Chest Amongst Spoils in Sunken Warship
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New insights into warship combat platforms and a unique late medieval
weapon chest have been discovered in studies of the Danish flagship
Gribshunden/Gripen which sank in the Blekinge archipelago in 1495.

Searching the Vulture Dog
Last spring, marine archaeologists from Stockholm University and
Södertörn University dived on Danish King Hans' flagship Gripen (also
known as Griphund or the Vulture Dog) at Stora Ekön in the Blekinge
archipelago. The flagship sank together with about a hundred German
mercenaries after a fire on board during a trip to Kalmar in 1495.

Although the wreck is partially disintegrated, the wreckage on the
bottom is very well preserved. There are also timbers here that are
believed to have belonged to the ship's superstructure, including parts
from the ‘castle’, which functioned as raised fighting platforms on the
ship.

Since 2013, investigations have been conducted on the wreck by Södertörn
University. Last year's dives focused on Rolf Warming's ongoing thesis
project at the Center for Maritime Studies (Cemas) and Stockholm
University. In the study "Soldiers at Sea", he examines weapon
technology linked to the soldiers on board and the superstructure of
warships during the period 1450-1650 AD.

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Video with 3D model of the weapon chest, a so-called Zeuglade. (Florian
Huber/Stockholm University)

New Report Based on Last Year's Dives
In the days to come, a report by Rolf Warming and Johan Rönnby,
professor of marine archeology at Södertörn University, is being
published about the findings from the dives last year. The survey has
provided new data for the ongoing work to reconstruct and analyze the
ship's superstructure. The result thus complements the current ship
architectural knowledge of the wreck and the overall ambition to
reconstruct the ship. Furthermore, the results provide a more detailed
insight into the soldiers' armament and presence on board. In addition,
new insights are given into how the wreck site has been affected and
changed over the years.

After mapping the timbers at the wreck site, the researchers can state
that a large amount of the superstructure has been preserved, even if
the various timbers are separated and scattered on the seabed. These
timbers come from the quarterdeck and upper deck – the ship's fighting
platforms. The timbers can give researchers important insights into how
the superstructure has looked and thus the warship's combat capabilities.

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Unique Weapon Box from German Mercenaries
The researchers have also identified and documented two cannon mounts
and a unique weapon case.

Weapon chest with contents. The solid line indicates one oblong side of
the coffin; the dotted lines indicate the approximate location of the
sides of the coffin. Contents: (1) lead plates, (2-3) molds, (4) oblong
side of coffin with fold and iron corrosion (from locks and fittings?),
(5) cylindrical 'jars' (possibly gunpowder containers) and (6) mould.
(Florian Huber, with outlines and notes by Rolf Warming/Stockholm
University)

Weapon chest with contents. The solid line indicates one oblong side of
the coffin; the dotted lines indicate the approximate location of the
sides of the coffin. Contents: (1) lead plates, (2-3) molds, (4) oblong
side of coffin with fold and iron corrosion (from locks and fittings?),
(5) cylindrical 'jars' (possibly gunpowder containers) and (6) mould.
(Florian Huber, with outlines and notes by Rolf Warming/Stockholm
University)

The contents of the gun chest are undeniably one of the most important
finds. The chest has been known since diving in 2019 but now we have
documented the contents carefully with 3D. It contains, among other
things, several different molds and lead sheet for the production of
lead bullets for early handguns. It is an ammunition toolbox - probably
belonging to the German mercenaries who were on board at the time of the
sinking, says Rolf Warming.

Ornamental border with riveted brass rings for a chainmail shirt
(so-called hauberk) which was analyzed in connection with the dives. A
chainmail of this quality can consist of up to 150,000 rings. (Rolf
Warming/Stockholm University)

Ornamental border with riveted brass rings for a chainmail shirt
(so-called hauberk) which was analyzed in connection with the dives. A
chainmail of this quality can consist of up to 150,000 rings. (Rolf
Warming/Stockholm University)

Armor with 150,000 Rings
The researchers have also made an extensive analysis of the mail
fragments that have been found at the wreck site during previous
investigations. These fragments probably come from one or more chain
mail shirts.

The analysis, which was carried out together with Professor Kerstin
Lidén at Stockholm University, shows that the ring weave contained
several different threads and construction techniques, indicating that
it has been repaired on several occasions. Based on the dimensions of
the preserved rings, such chain mail shirts may have contained 150,000
rings.

Important Piece of the Military History Puzzle
The work to reconstruct the Gripen/Griphund has been going on since
2013. Right now, the efforts are focused on the superstructure. In his
doctoral thesis, Rolf Warming is also working on clarifying the ship's
combat capabilities and the role of the soldiers on board.

The ship is an important piece of the puzzle in the "military revolution
at sea" in early modern times where the primary tactic shifted from
close combat to the difficult naval artillery. The ship will therefore
also be compared with other important warships to understand the
development, for example Mars (1564) and Vasa (1628), says Rolf Warming.

Johan Rönnby (MARIS/Södertörn University) inspects and documents parts
of the superstructure. (Florian Huber/Stockholm University)

Underwater Cameras and 3D Technology
The documentation is carried out using underwater cameras and
photogrammetric 3D technology. This is done in collaboration with an
international team of specialists from the National Museum of the Royal
Navy (Portsmouth), the University of Southampton and the University of
Connecticut participating in the project. The field effort was carried
out with support from the Voice of the Ocean foundation and Cemas.
Read the report Grifun/Gribshund (1495) Marine archaeological
documentation of a late medieval battleship, which is included in
Södertörn archaeological reports and studies and Stockholm Studies in
Archaeology.

This article was first published by the University of Stockholm, titled,
‘Wrecks of flagships provide puzzle pieces of military revolution at
sea’ and has been republished.

Top image: The authors at the stern of the wreck where the standing
bottom logs and stern are seen sticking up from the seabed, seen from
the starboard side. Source: Florian Huber/Stockholm University.

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