20th-Century Artifact Found in 15th-Century Estonian Shipwreck

TALLINN, ESTONIA—Estonian Public Broadcasting reports that a road construction project has uncovered a wooden ship near the harbor at Tallinn, which is located on the Baltic Sea coast. Archaeologist Rivo Bernotas explained that the ship was dated to the late fifteenth century by the presence of musket shot at the site, but the researchers also uncovered a can of food with an expiration date of 1972 within the ship’s structure. A modern metal cable was found attached to the ship’s bow as well. Bernotas suggests the ship was moved and reburied in the twentieth century, during the Soviet era, because it was obstructing a shipping lane or construction work. The researchers will create a 3-D model of the site, take samples of wood from the ship to confirm its age and origins, and interview people who worked at the port and may have witnessed the vessel’s relocation. To read about the wreck of a sixteenth-century Dutch ship found during a recent shipping accident, go to "Spring Boards."