17th-century lost warship ‘Applet’ has been found in Sweden!

The legendary 17th-century battleship ‘Vasa,’ which perished on its first voyage, has a long-lost sister ship, according to Swedish marine archaeologists, who made the discovery on Monday, according to the Swedish Museum of Wrecks. The 69-meter (225-foot) ‘Vasa,’ which is currently on display in Stockholm after being salvaged in the 1960s, and the 1629-launched ‘Applet’ (The Apple) were both constructed by the same shipbuilder.

The 69-meter (225-foot) ‘Vasa,’ which is currently on display in Stockholm after being salvaged in the 1960s, and the 1629-launched ‘Applet’ (The Apple) were both constructed by the same shipbuilder. Jim Hansson, a maritime archaeologist of the museum, remarked, Hansson said the construction and the dimensions seemed ‘very familiar’ to them, sparking hope it could be one of Vasa’s sister ships.

The hull of the ship was still intact up to the lower gundeck, despite some of the sides having come off. The sections that had fallen off revealed two tiers of gunports. In the spring of 2022, a more extensive study of the wreck was conducted, revealing ship characteristics that had previously only been visible on the Vasa.

Technical information, dimensions, and wood samples, according to the museum, proved that it was ‘in fact Applet, Vasa’s sister ship’. Two further battleships were found nearby in 2019, according to the same museum. At the time, archaeologists thought one of them could have been Applet, but additional research revealed that the vessels were really two medium-sized warships from 1648 with the names ‘Apollo’ and ‘Maria’.

Key puzzle part
According to Mr. Hansson, ‘Applet’ adds yet another crucial element to the evolution of Swedish shipbuilding, allowing academics to examine the variations between Applet and Vasa. Another maritime archaeologist at the museum, Mr. Patrik Hoglund, said that the discovery would ‘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’.

The vessel ‘Vasa,’ named after one of Sweden’s monarchs, was intended to represent Sweden’s military prowess but sank after little over 1,000 metres of sailing (yards). It was recovered in 1961 and is now on exhibit at the Vasa Museum in Stockholm, one of the most well-liked tourist destinations in Sweden. According to the museum, Mr. Hein Jakobsson, the architect of both ships, knew even before Vasa was launched that her dimensions may cause instability, therefore he designed Applet broader than her tragic sister.

The ship was considered unfit for the sea in late 1658, and Vaxholm sank it the following year. The same shipwright was hired to build two other ships, Kronan (the Crown) and Scepter, which, like Applet, served in the Swedish navy and engaged in naval combat. The ships are thought to have been deliberately sunk after being decommissioned.