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Maria Hansson. Photo.

Maria Hansson

Senior lecturer

Maria Hansson. Photo.

Fish in a barrel : Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus) from the Baltic Sea wreck of the royal Danish flagship Gribshunden (1495)

Author

  • Stella Macheridis
  • Maria C. Hansson
  • Brendan P. Foley

Summary, in English

In 1495, the royal Danish ship Gribshunden sank in the Baltic Sea, near the town of Ronneby. During archaeological excavations in 2019, a wooden barrel submerged inside the shipwreck revealed the almost complete and well-preserved remains of a sturgeon fish. In this paper, we present the find in terms of species identification, estimation of number of individuals, size reconstruction and butchery marks. Results show that the remains most likely derive from one specimen of Atlantic sturgeon (Acipenser oxyrinchus). Species identification was made on morphological basis as well as ancient DNA analysis, using mitochondrial DNA for identification. Based on the location of chop marks, we argue that the sturgeon was chopped to larger pieces, before it was put in a wooden barrel and stored in the hold of Gribshunden. The high value of sturgeon during the late medieval period is key to understand its incidence on the royal flagship Gribshunden. The Danish King Hans was onboard the ship, on his way to Kalmar for a diplomatic summit to claim the Swedish throne. The ship carried valuable cargo, intended to impress the Swedish noblemen awaiting the king. The Gribshunden sturgeon is among the first examples derived from an underwater context, at least in the Baltic Sea. By the sheer quantity of the remains as well as its high contextual integrity, it is unique in a Scandinavian context.

Department/s

  • Historical Osteology
  • Centre for Environmental and Climate Science (CEC)
  • Archaeology

Publishing year

2020

Language

English

Publication/Series

Journal of Archaeological Science: Reports

Volume

33

Document type

Journal article

Publisher

Elsevier

Topic

  • Archaeology

Keywords

  • Acipenser
  • Ancient DNA
  • Baltic Sea
  • Gribshunden shipwreck
  • Late Medieval Scandinavia
  • Submerged archaeology
  • Zooarchaeology

Status

Published

Project

  • GRIBSHUNDEN Shipwreck 2019
  • The sturgeon barrel from the Gribshunden shipwreck
  • Floating Castles: the Built Environment and Social Signaling in Medieval Scandinavia

ISBN/ISSN/Other

  • ISSN: 2352-409X