瑞典斯德哥尔摩弗拉克沉船博物馆的海洋考古学家发现了 17 世纪军舰胫骨的残骸。该船于 1629 年下水，与著名的瓦萨号由同一家造船厂建造。通过将测量结果、技术细节和木材样本与档案记录进行匹配，确认沉船的身份为胫骨小部件。

来自弗拉克的海洋考古学家与瑞典海军合作，调查了斯德哥尔摩附近的瓦克斯霍尔姆岛周围的水域。在2021年12月的勘测中，他们有了重大发现——一艘大船的残骸。尽管其侧面的部分部分已经塌陷到海底，但船体仍然完好无损，一直延伸到较低的炮甲板。舷窗位于两个不同的高度，一个在另一个之上，表明这艘船是一艘有两层炮甲板的军舰。

博物馆的海洋考古学家吉姆·汉森 (Jim Hansson) 描述了他们在观察到这艘沉船与瓦萨号之间的相似性后的兴奋之情： “当我们看到这艘沉船与瓦萨号有多么相似时，我们的心跳加速了。 ” 无论是结构还是强大的尺寸都显得非常熟悉。我们心中燃起了找到瓦萨号姐妹船之一的希望。”

瑞典造船业的一块拼图

2022年春天，对沉船进行了更深入的调查，进一步检查。在潜水过程中，发现了以前仅在瓦萨号上看到过的具体船舶细节，并采集了多个样本并进行了分析。结果显示，用于该船木材的橡木于 1627 年在马拉达伦砍伐，与几年前采伐的瓦萨号木材来源相同。

“尺寸、结构细节、木材样本和档案材料都指向同一个方向，令人惊讶的是，我们发现了瓦萨号的姊妹船胫骨小船，”弗拉克的海洋考古学家帕特里克·霍格伦德说。

2019 年，弗拉克的海上考古学家在瓦克斯霍尔姆发现了两艘沉船，最初似乎是腿桩。然而，进一步的调查显示，这些船只实际上是阿波罗号和玛丽亚号，这两艘中型船只的历史可以追溯到1648年。尽管遭遇挫折，考古学家并没有放弃，继续寻找瓦萨号的姊妹船。

胫骨小程序的发现提供了该领域重要的新知识。“有了胫小程序，我们可以在瑞典造船业的发展中添加另一个关键部分，”汉森说。“只有现在我们才能真正研究Vasa和胫小程序在结构上的差异。”

“这将帮助我们了解大型战舰是如何演变的，从不稳定的瓦萨号到能够控制波罗的海的适航庞然大物——这是瑞典在 1600 年代崛起为强国的决定性因素，”赫格伦德补充道。

“对于那些想通过这艘旧船揭开一段新的激动人心的历史的人来说，这一发现也很有价值，”汉森说。“胫小程序是我们文化遗产的一部分。”

Marine archaeologists from Vrak – Museum of Wrecks in Stockholm, Sweden, have uncovered the wreck of the 17th-century warship Äpplet. Launched in 1629, the ship was built by the same shipbuilder as the renowned Vasa. The identity of the wreck was confirmed as the Äpplet by matching the measurements, technical details and wood samples with the archival records.

The marine archaeologists from Vrak had collaborated with the Swedish Navy to survey the waters around Vaxholm, an island near Stockholm. During their survey in December 2021, they made a major discovery – the wreck of a large ship. Despite parts of its sides having crumbled to the seabed, the hull was still intact, extending to a lower gun deck. The presence of portholes on two different levels, one above the other, indicated that the ship was a warship with two gun decks.

Jim Hansson, a marine archaeologist at the museum, described their excitement upon observing the similarities between this wreck and the Vasa: “Our pulses spiked when we saw how similar the wreck was to Vasa. Both the construction and the powerful dimensions seemed very familiar. The hope of finding one of Vasa’s sister ships was sparked within us.”

Piece of the puzzle of Swedish shipbuilding

In the spring of 2022, a more in-depth survey was conducted to further examine the shipwreck. During the dives, specific ship details were discovered that had previously only been seen on the Vasa, and several samples were taken and analyses conducted. The results showed that the oak used for the ship’s timber had been cut in 1627 in Mälardalen – the same source as the Vasa’s timber, harvested just a few years earlier.

“The dimensions, construction details, wood samples and archival material all pointed in the same direction – amazingly, we had found Vasa’s sister ship the Äpplet,” said Patrik Höglund, a marine archaeologist at Vrak.

In 2019, Vrak’s maritime archaeologists discovered two shipwrecks at Vaxholm that initially appeared to be the Äpplet. However, further surveys revealed that the vessels were actually the Apollo and the Maria, two medium-sized ships dating from 1648. Despite this setback, the archaeologists did not give up and continued their search for Vasa’s sister ship.

The discovery of the Äpplet provides significant new knowledge in the field. “With Äpplet, we can add another key piece of the puzzle in the development of Swedish shipbuilding,” Hansson said. “And it’s only now that we can really study the differences in the constructions of Vasa and Äpplet.”

“This will help us understand how the large warships evolved, from the unstable Vasa to seaworthy behemoths that could control the Baltic Sea – a decisive factor in Sweden’s emergence as a great power in the 1600s,” Höglund added.

“The find is also valuable for those who want to uncover a new piece of exciting history through the old ship,” Hansson said. “Äpplet is part of our cultural heritage.”