Last Wednesday, the spokesperson of Baltictech, a diving expedition company based in Gdynia, Poland, announced the discovery of a shipwreck.The team found the wreck at a depth of about 60 meters, 20 nautical miles south of the Swedish island of Öland. The ship, probably dating back to the 19th century, carried a cargo of champagne cases, mineral water, and porcelain, all astonishingly well-preserved.
Closer inspection revealed that the seals on the clay bottles indicated the mineral water was from the Selters brand, which at that time was considered a valuable beverage, often used medicinally. According to Baltictech, the seals suggest the ship dates between 1850 and 1867. Tomasz Stachura, the team leader, shared with the BBC that Russian Tsar Nicholas I reportedly lost a ship in this area around 1852.
Fragments of inscriptions on the corks suggest that the champagne may have been produced by the French company Louis Roederer.
The discovery of champagne on the wreck, however, challenges the assumption that this is the ship lost in 1852. Divers estimate there are at least 100 bottles of champagne on board. Fragments of inscriptions on the corks suggest that the champagne may have been produced by the French company Louis Roederer, according to Tomasz Stachura, who spoke to the German news agency dpa. However, Roederer's trade with the Russian Tsar's court only began to flourish during the reign of the more Europe-friendly Tsar Alexander II, after the Paris Peace Treaty of 1856, which ended the Crimean War.
In a video message, diver Marek Cacaj explained that the cargo apparently belonged to the Russian Tsar. Cacaj implies that this champagne could be a special edition created specifically for Alexander II. This could be Roederer's prestigious Cuvée Cristal, which, however, was first produced in 1876, nine years after the earliest possible date for the Selters water.
Even if the champagne is a more "ordinary" Roederer from the mid-19th century, the discovery remains significant. In 2010, divers off the coast of Öland recovered 168 bottles of champagne from another shipwreck. That champagne, from the brands Veuve Clicquot, Juglar, and Heidsieck Monopole, dated between 1831 and 1840. At an auction, 64 well-preserved bottles fetched around €110,000.
Legally, the find is now under the jurisdiction of the Swedish province of Kalmar. The Maritime Archaeological Research Institute at Södertörn University in Stockholm, responsible for underwater archaeology in Sweden, has also been informed. For now, it remains uncertain when or if the liquid treasure on the seabed will be recovered. PG
