100 champagne bottles and valuable mineral water found on a shipwreck from 19th century

A well-preserved 19th-century shipwreck stocked with champagne bottles was discovered in the Baltic Sea. A group of Polish divers made the discovery off the southern coast of Sweden.

The historic sailing ship was “loaded to the sides with champagne, wine, mineral water, and porcelain,” according to the Baltic Tech team that discovered it.

“To discover a wreck with so much cargo, it’s a first for me”

Divers initially thought the wreck on the sonar was a fishing boat, but after two divers spent almost two hours on a quick dive, they realized they had found something interesting.

“I have been diving for 40 years, and it often happens that there is one bottle or two… but to discover a wreck with so much cargo, it’s a first for me,” claimed Tomasz Stachura, the leader of the diving team that discovered the wreck.

The group came upon more than a hundred champagne bottles and mineral water bottles made of clay. According to Baltictech, even though the champagne appeared more valuable, the mineral water was actually more valued.

In a statement Baltictech said “Its value was so precious that transports were escorted by the police.”

Shipment was produced between 1850-1867

Mineral water, once only accessible to royals, was treated like medicine. Bottles with the Selters seal, a highly regarded German brand, were used for over 800 years. Originating from a mineral spring in Selters, Hesse, the water has been bottled since then.

Stachura said “Thanks to the shape of the stamp and with historians’ help, we know that our shipment was produced between 1850-1867. Interestingly, the pottery factory into which the water was bottled also exists, and we are in contact with them to find out more details.”

Divers discovered bottles lying about 20 nautical miles south of Öland, Sweden. However, due to administrative restrictions, extraction could take time.

 The bottle, which has been there for 170 years, could have been transported to Russian Emperor Tsar Nicholas I, who lost a ship in the same area during that time. 

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