Wreck Borstö 1 archaeological recovery 19-21.5.2023 (

Описание: The video shows the recovery of some remaining artefacts in a sailor trunk from wreck Borstö 1. The 18th century wreck lies in 35m depth close to Borstö island south of Turku in Finland. The hull is intact and the lower parts of all three masts are upright. Wooden wrecks in Baltic Sea are in relatively good condition, because there are no shipworms and no tide. The artefact recovery was done by maritime archaeologist Yann Irissou and assistant researcher Sami Brchisky, both from the Finnish Heritage Agency (FHA).

The wreck site has been heavily looted in the last few years, so a joint expedition by the FHA and MAS (Finnish Maritime Archaeological Association, Suomen Meriarkeologinen Seura) set out to recover some of the remaining artefacts that were easily accessible. It is unfortunate that lack of funding has hampered archaeological work on this site in this millennium.

Borstö 1 was long thought to be the Dutch galliot St. Michel (Sankt Mikael), en route from Amsterdam in Holland to St. Petersburg in Russia. Most of the wreck treasures at the Maritime Centre Vellamo (the main maritime museum in Finland) in Kotka come from this wreck, and they were recovered from Borstö 1 in late 1990’s. Among the more than 600 artefacts found are magnificent Meissen porcelain sets, gold snuffboxes and pocket watches, navigational instruments, and a horse-drawn carriole.

St. Michel was thought to have sunk 1747. However, recent research indicates that St. Michel reached St. Petersburg in the same year. The actual identity and year of sinking of Borstö 1 is again unknown, but based on studies on the porcelain cargo Borstö 1 sank sometime in the mid-18th century.

The wreck site (#1648) is protected by law and is marked as such in nautical charts. There is no diving here without the express permission of the FHA and a representative of the FHA onboard.