Casks from Gribshunden (1495) – Dendrochronology of Late Medieval Shipboard Victual Containers. (3rd July 2022)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Hansson, Anton; Linderson, Hans; Foley, Brendan
• Is Part Of: International journal of nautical archaeology. Volume 51:Number 2(2022)
• Page Start: 358
• Page End: 375
• Publication Date: 2022-07-03
• Subjects: Marine archaeology -- dendrochronology -- shipwreck -- Baltic Sea -- medieval; Arqueología marina, dendrocronología, naufragio, Mar Báltico, Medieval; 海洋考古 -- 树木年代学 -- 沉船 -- 波罗的海 -- 中世纪; 海洋考古 -- 樹木年代學 -- 沉船 -- 波羅的海 -- 中世紀; علم الآثار البحریة، علم تأریخ حلقات الأشجار، حُطام سَفینة، بحر البلطیق، العُصور الوسطى; Underwater archaeology -- Periodicals; 930.102804
• DOI: 10.1080/10572414.2022.2132715
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 1057-2414

Abstract

ABSTRACT: Wooden casks were used extensively to transport goods in medieval Europe but have been largely overlooked in Scandinavian marine archaeological studies. We present a study of casks recovered from the Danish-Norwegian royal flagship Gribshunden, which sank in the summer of 1495 outside Stora Ekö Island in southeastern Sweden. During excavations in 2020–2021, archaeologists recovered 135 wooden staves and heads for dendrochronological analysis. Seventy-nine percent of the samples were successfully dated and provenanced from seven different timber source areas, predominantly southeastern Baltic (59%) and Scania (22%). These results suggest the geographical extent of the late medieval Nordic timber trade. Components from several source areas were incorporated within individual casks, suggesting staves were bulk goods transported to production centres for cooperage. The dating results indicate the life span of medieval casks was just a few years. This study highlights the untapped potential of wooden casks for a wide range of research fields.