Featured Image Credit: Tomasz Stachura/Facebook
A group of divers hit the jackpot when they discovered a sunken sailing ship ‘loaded to the sides’ with more than 100 bottles of champagne.
Explorers who were diving in the Baltic Sea were ready to wrap up for the day when they spotted a mysterious shipwreck on their sonar.
Despite initially being hesitant, two members of the private group Baltictech eventually took the plunge and went beneath the waves.
What they uncovered was a surprise; s a priceless, long-lost shipment that could’ve been bound for royalty in the 1800s.
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“One of the wrecks on the sonar was barely scratching and looked like a fishing boat,” the Polish collective recounted in a statement.
“We were already after one dive that day and at first there were doubts whether there would be anyone willing to go down.”
Two divers, one named Marek Cacaj and the other Pawel Truszynski, eventually volunteered to explore the shipwreck situated south of Sweden.
However, when they hadn’t resurfaced two hours later, the remaining team members questioned whether they’d found something of interest.
Following Cacaj and Truszynski’s return, the rest of the private group were told of their discovery.
Below the water lay the wreck of a 19th-century sailing ship, claimed to be in ‘very good condition’ and ‘filled to the brim’ with various luxury items.
These included bottles of mineral water, porcelain, wine and more than 100 bottles of champagne.
The brand of champagne is still to be determined, writes The New York Post. But it’s said the letter ‘R’ could be seen on one cork.
Upon the champagne discovery, historians were employed to date the shipment.
They apparently let the team know that the bottles were produced sometime between 1850 and 1867.
Therefore if these dates are accurate then the bottles of bubbly situated on the seabed would be just a few years younger than the oldest bottle of champagne to exist - Perrier-Jouet’s 1825 Vintage.
However, would you believe us if we told you the champagne wasn’t the most ‘interesting’ of the ship’s cargo?
Instead, the recovered mineral water bottles are what has piqued both the divers and historians’ interest.
In the 19th century, mineral water was considered medicinal and was highly valued by royal families throughout Europe.
Therefore, experts believe that the sunken ship could have been traveling to a royal table in Stockholm or perhaps St Petersburg before it met its fate.
The lacquered bottles were produced by a German brand called Selters which unbelievably still exists to this day.
“At this depth the wreckage is perfectly preserved, the temperature is constant, there are no currents and it’s dark,” Tomasz Stachura assured The Associated Press.
“That preserves the wreckage in a wonderful way.”
Unfortunately, the divers didn’t get the chance to toast to their successes as the champagne bottles remained at the bottom of the sea.
It is also yet to be determined the bottle’s worth — but due to their presumed age, we can bet they’re worth a buck or two!
If you want to dive down to the 19th-century ship yourself then the good news is that Baltictech is currently discussing possible excursions with the #MARIS Foundation and Södertörn University.
“We have guidelines on how to proceed now and be able to explore the wreck together in the future,” they wrote.
