Vasakungarnas skepp - det marina 1500-talet

Deep dive into history!

Curious about kings, shipwrecks, battles and shipping? At Västerviks Museum you can literally dive into history and explore shipwrecks from the 16th century with VR and 3D experiences. Welcome to a royal adventure! In the exhibition "The Ships of the Vasa Kings", we take the visitor on a journey through time and space. Discover the story behind some of the many ships of the Vasa kings - such as the Elephant, the Kravel and the Mars. How were these giant ships built and what might it have been like on board a ship in the middle of a fierce battle far out on the Baltic Sea? This and much more is told in the new royal exhibition focusing on 16th century maritime history and the early days of the great ships.

**Vasa & shipbuilding

Around Europe, large new ships were built in the 16th century. These warships and cargo ships were part of a societal change that would eventually lead to the modern and global society that surrounds us today. The history of the Swedish Navy began with Gustav Vasa's purchase of armed ships 501 years ago and the construction of shipyards along the Baltic coast to build large warships adapted for naval combat. The hereditary king Erik XIV continued in the same spirit and had several large ships built, including the Mars, also known as the Makalös, the largest warship of the time. With more than 120 cannons, she was the most heavily armed warship ever seen. The Mars sank in a bloody battle at sea off northern Öland on May 31, 1564, and hundreds of men followed her into the depths.

Some of the Vasa kings' ships are preserved as wrecks at the bottom of the Baltic Sea. Through marine archaeological research, we can learn about their construction, cargo and crew. The old ships also bring us closer to the early modern princes.

In 2011, the wreck was recovered at a depth of 75 meters by the Ocean Discovery diving team from Västervik. This was also the start of the research and communication projects on 16th century maritime history that are run in collaboration between Västervik Museum, MARIS/Södertörns Högskola, Försvarshögskolan and Stockholm University.

New techniques for non-destructive archaeology in deep water have been developed for the exploration of wrecks. Västerviks Museum participates in this work and is responsible for the mediation through the exhibition Mars Makalös - the marine 16th century and also runs a development project regarding research and mediation with new visualization methods in a museum environment. Part of the development work has been to carry out, with the support of National Geographic, a very detailed 3D photography of the entire wreck site, which now forms the basis for various visualization projects. The model shows ship timbers and building structures, but also objects, cannons and skeletal remains.

Admission SEK 125

0-18 Free admission