On one of the islands of Stockholm, where the monarchs of Sweden long ago hunted, there is an unusual angular structure. Above the dark roof of the building, two structures of scarlet color, reminiscent of the mast of a ship, soar upward. This “Vasa” is a museum of one exhibit. “Vasa” is a ship of the 17th century. His wooden structures were saved almost one hundred percent. Sailing only 30 minutes, the ship sank. And today, everyone has the opportunity to consider this vehicle in its almost pristine form.
Ship construction
Vasa is a museum that delights many tourists. This is the only sailing ship on the planet of the XVII century, which managed to survive to our times. In the 1620s, Sweden, through the formation of a personal fleet, tried to establish itself at sea. King Gustav II Adolf, who ruled at that time, believed that the greatness of the country depended on God and its fleet. The flagship of the Swedish fleet (Vasa ship) was launched in 1628. The name of the vessel was given in honor of the dynasty that ruled in that era.
The creators of the machine had the intention to create a ship with which no other ship in the Baltic Sea can compare. Today, Vasa is a museum, which is also difficult to find a worthy competitor. The sailboat was supposed to be the personification of the luxury and wealth of the kingdom. Therefore, more than four hundred different gilded sculptures became the frigate's decorations. As a result, shipbuilders created a powerful and magnificent 64-gun machine.
The history of the sailing ship begins with the conclusion of a contract for the creation of a new ship between the Swedish king and the Dutch master of naval affairs Hubertsson. "Vasa" was built over three years. All work took place at the Stockholm shipyard. The construction was personally monitored by the monarch himself. More than one thousand trees were cut down for the ship, and 400 workers were engaged in its construction. And the flagship would have expected a long and interesting history of existence, if not for one fatal mistake: the craftsmen made an incredibly narrow hull of the sailboat, which led to such a tragic fate.
The death of a sailboat
August 10, 1628 "Vasa" was launched and launched into the open space of the bay. It was a truly historic day for Sweden. A huge crowd came to see this sight. The ship saluted, and then the worst thing began to happen: as soon as the smoke from the explosions of the guns had subsided, the public saw the newly-made car quickly sink to the bottom. A volley of airborne guns provoked powerful recoil, after which the sailboat strongly tilted, and streams of water began to fill open cannon ports with lightning speed. As a result, guns, due to a strong tilt, began to slide from one side to another. This was the final sentence to the frigate.
"Vasa" lay on the bottom of the Baltic Sea for 333 years. He was found by an enthusiastic engineer Anders Fransen. Due to the low salinity level of this sea, there are no grinder worms in it. Therefore, the sailboat under water was practically not injured. Now “Vasa” is a museum located on the island of Djurgården, in the very center of the Swedish capital.
Museum Overview
The Vasa Museum is one of Sweden’s main attractions. The institution has been open since August 1990. Especially for the exposition of the sailboat and artifacts that relate to it, the building of the institution was designed. This is one of the most visited museums in the country: almost one million visitors come to see the exhibition every year.
The institution has 11 regular exhibitions, each of which is associated with the history of the failed flagship, its construction, collapse and restoration. In addition, there is a cinema hall in which a film about the history of Vasa, a restaurant and a souvenir shop are shown.
Three expositions: “The period of the ship’s construction”, “Face to face” and “Salvation”
Museum "Vasa" demonstrates the audience of the exhibition, which fully describe the fate of the ship. So, the exhibition “The period of construction” invites guests to get acquainted with the 17th century in the history of the world (worldview, incidents and facts). The exposition seems to immerse people in an era that took place 400 years ago. Thanks to this show, a person gets an idea of how the Ottoman Empire, America, West Africa, China and other states lived in the 17th century.
Face-to-face exposition tells about those poor people who happened to be on board the Vasa at the time of his death. The meticulous work of historians and anthropologists allowed us to restore about 30 skeletons of drowned people. Researchers also managed to obtain information about the way of life of each dead person, their state of health and appearance. Thus, visitors have the opportunity to come face to face with people who lived four centuries ago.
Touch screens, exhibits and a diorama of the Salvation exhibition narrate about searches, detection and raising to the surface of a vessel. Most of the attention is paid to the person who found the car, and then led its rise, - Anders Fransenu.
Three next exposure
The Vasa ship museum in Stockholm also shows the chests of sailors with their contents, household items. Upper deck and hold models are also available. All this can be seen at the exhibition entitled "Life on board."
The exhibition “Images of Power” reveals the symbolic meaning of those many sculptures that adorned “Vasu”. So, among the statues are emperors, demons, mermaids, pagan deities and even angels. In those days, all these creatures were obliged to maintain the status of a powerful sea state.
Looking at the Stockholm Shipyard exhibition, you realize that four centuries ago, shipbuilding was a real art. Here are collected the remains of mechanisms and devices, the personal belongings of artists, builders and carpenters who worked on the creation of a sailboat.
A few more expositions
The Preservation department is incredibly interesting for the audience. To preserve the ship-museum "Vasa", a photo of which can be seen in our description, the restorers took many measures. What exactly took place, and this exposition tells.
Strength and Glory is an incredibly interesting museum compartment. This exposition gives a complete picture of what kind of kingdom the most powerful and expensive sailboat had. Scientists carefully restored all the colors. Also in this hall there are huge screens installed, on which the ship is depicted in all its majesty.
The most intriguing exhibitions
The Vasa Museum in Stockholm (photo above) also boasts some incredibly intriguing exhibits. For example, the "Museum Garden" is a real garden, broken near the institution. Plants grow in the garden that the doctors on the ship planned to use in order to cure the sailors. And in the garden you can see the vegetables that filled the ship's holds.
And here’s another exhibition called “Vasa Model”. Here is a flagship model on a scale of one to ten. A small copy of the ship can be viewed for hours. Then, returning here again, you will surely discover what you have not seen before. To create this “miniature” model, all research materials were taken from the moment the frigate was lifted from the seabed to the present day.
How to get to the museum
Getting to the Vasa Museum in Stockholm is pretty easy, especially since there are four ways to do this:
- Public transport: immediately near the main entrance to the institution stops the city tram number 7, as well as bus number 44.
- Ferry: getting to the sights by water is an extremely interesting way. The ferry leaves from Gamla Stan and from the center of Stockholm.
- A tourist bus leaves for Djurgården Island every 20 minutes from the city bus station.
- From the center of Stockholm to the museum can easily be reached on foot. You have to overcome only 2.5 kilometers. This way is the best, especially if the weather is nice outside.
In the summer, driving to the museum in a private car is not recommended, since you may not find parking places.
If the visitor is not yet 18 years old, then he can visit the object completely free of charge. And tickets for adults cost 130 kroons (about 1000 rubles).
