Isn’t there a shorter route? Fortunately, our proposal to travel to Tczew via Paris has, above all – thanks to UNESCO – a symbolic dimension.
This is the second time in the last dozen years that Polish museum professionals have been invited to present their achievements in Paris under the auspices of UNESCO. This time they concerned… underwater archaeology! Any nautical connotation – from technology to history to painting and fiction – requires drawing on nautology in the broadest sense, including the discipline known as underwater archaeology. Its diverse output, can be promoted most effectively by reaching for attractive forms of dissemination. It was no different this time, either.
Treasures of the sea
The Salle des Actes – at UNESCO’s Paris headquarters – in March 2023 featured the exhibition Underwater Archaeology in Poland. History and Prospects., prepared by the National Maritime Museum (NMM) in Gdansk – as part of the Inspiring Culture project. It shows the results of the work carried out in our country in the past half-century. Documentation was presented related to shipwrecks discovered off the Baltic coast (including a commercial holk type from the 15th century (called the Copper Ship), the Swedish galleon “Solen,” sunk during the Battle of Oliwa in 1627, or the Polish destroyer ORP “Wicher,” bombed by the German air force on September 3, 1939. The exhibition was complemented by information on the latest advances in conservation techniques for artifacts excavated from the bottom of the Baltic Sea. This Parisian exhibition was also shown in the Croatian capital.
Poland ratified on 17.05.2021. provisions of the UNESCO Convention on the Protection of Underwater Cultural Heritage, and the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage (MKiDN) has entrusted the National Maritime Museum (NMM) with the ongoing inventory and updating of the database of underwater cultural heritage objects located in Polish maritime areas.
The NMM is continuing – started by the Central Maritime Museum in the late 1960s/early 1970s – an inventory of wrecks in the Gdansk Bay area. A team of archaeologist-divers from the Underwater Research Department of the NMM is exploring the bottom and compiling reports from their work. So far, dozens of wrecks have been plotted on the map, and more than a dozen have been surveyed using archaeological methods. Which allows for an important addition to our knowledge of the development of the medieval art of boatbuilding, formerly known as korabnik (from the Greek carabion – small ship).
As early as the 10th century, the beginnings of specialization in the construction of types of boats are dated – wider ones for transporting cargo, and narrow ones designed to carry warriors. (See, e.g., Pavel Litvinenko, Digital reconstruction of the early medieval warship Puck 2 from the site of Puck medieval harbor in Puck, “Pomerania Antiqua”, vol. XXX, Gdansk 2021, pp. 115 – 113). On the other hand, from the Baltic wreck with the symbol F33.2 it was possible to excavate in 2003-2005, as many as 100 antique objects. Among others, the wreck of a ship – designating it as F.53.15 – carrying, among other things, a cargo of iron ore to the port of Gdansk was considered an important discovery. The wreck attests to the nature and extent of the trade of the “Rzplita.” (see Tomasz Bednarz, Archaeological research of the 17th-century wreck F53.15 Ore ship from the Gulf of Gdansk and its identification, “Pomerania Antiqua”, vol. XXX, Gdansk 2021, pp.133 – 160).
The list of underwater Baltic archaeological successes is, of course, not limited to the examples signaled above and is much longer.
“To DNA.”
This is the title of the exhibition of Baltic finds at the Gdansk NMM and the Wiedemann House in Pruszcz Gdanski. It consists of dozens of various objects excavated by underwater archaeologists from shipwrecks resting at the bottom of the Polish part of the Baltic Sea. Most often excavated are navigational instruments, personal belongings of the crew and ceramic vessels, but also – coins and cannons. Among the marine Baltic finds, there is even, almost 3 centuries old … a flute, which conservationists “returned the voice.” During this summer, these intriguing underwater treasures of the Baltic can also be admired in Malbork.
Tczew peculiarities
Traditions related to the water elements are richly and multifaceted in the history of Tczew. (See Edwin Rozenkranc, Tczew seaport and its legal status, Nautology, no. 1-4, 1975, s. 25-29; Bronislaw Hynowski, Bridges near Tczew, “Technical Review,” no. 6/2023). In Tczew was established in 1920 In 1931, with the status of a university of the professional type, the state-owned Maritime School The year was transferred to Gdynia. Since 1984 In Tczew, the Vistula Museum has been conducting lively scientific and exhibition activities. One of the few institutions in the world dedicated to the history of inland navigation and technical issues, related to boatbuilding, river management (including boatbuilding tools and fishing equipment). Therefore, among the originators of the idea of establishing a new and unique – not only on a European scale – facility, called the Shipwreck Conservation Center (CKWS), prevailed the idea to locate it precisely in Tczew, near the Vistula River Museum.
For the CKWS, it was built in 2016. special pavilion. The cost of its construction was more than PLN 22 million, and 85% of this amount came from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism, while 15% was allocated by the Ministry of Culture and National Heritage. Now the CKWS, with its Studio Warehouse – being one of the 9 independent branches of the NMM – has become a much-visited place, as proven by this year’s Museum Night, which was a successful marriage of technology and art. In addition to, among others. demonstration of 3D scanning of maritime monuments, a night concert of songs by G. P. Telemann from the collection “Singende Geographie” was held at the CKWS, performed by the Choir of the AMA named after him. St. Moniuszki in Gdansk.
In real life and … “virtual”
The CKWS building was designed in accordance with the innovative urbanist principle of openness, in such a way as to combine exhibition and educational functions with the activities of conservation studios. Thus, at the same time, viewers are provided with the opportunity to directly observe the work being carried out here. Tczew’s CKWS is perhaps the only facility of its kind in the world, where visitors to the exhibition can – without disturbing the museum workers – watch the implementation of the various stages of the conservation process. There are also special workshops on the conservation of artifacts excavated from the seabed.
The CKWS conservation department has its own workshops: blacksmithing, locksmithing and boatbuilding. It is equipped with, among other things. in a metal blasting machine, has an overhead crane with a lifting capacity of 5 t. and movable platforms. The equipment makes it possible to carry out conservation and reconstruction work. A system of special tubs is also being used to preserve the wood, which comes from underwater surveys. The X-ray laboratory uses, among other things. From a 3D modeling scanner and a spectrophotometer.
Almost 10 years ago, cooperation was established with experts from the Oslo Maritime Museum and the Museum of Cultural History at the University of Oslo. And so, among other things. With the staff of the first partner we exchanged experiences and good practices in the field of wet archaeological wood conservation, while with the second partner we discussed methods of digitizing monuments, informs Szymon Kulas – project manager of the CKWS construction project, deputy director of the NMM.
Attractions power
The CKWS showcases various structural elements, ranging from a 16-foot keel and portions of the sides to anchors. The CKWS also presents Slavic longboats (one-footed boats) and early stave structures. (See Zbigniew Binerowski, Stanislaw Gierszewski, Craft production of wooden sailing ships from the 14th to the middle of the 19th century [w:] History of shipbuilding on the Gdansk Coast, ed. Edmund Cieślak, Gdynia 1972, pp.69-214). A Virtual Maritime Museum has also been created in the form of a set of applications, available on desktop computers and on mobile devices. This way we get information about where the monument was found, its history and construction.
Using augmented reality (AR) technology connected to a smartphone, visitors can see specially prepared presentations of museum exhibits. Under the slogan “On the water and underwater” we learn not only about the history of Polish boatbuilding, but we can also, for example, observe the work of the underwater cabin “Medusa”. Also available for viewing are video recordings of work done underwater by archaeologists – divers.
On the trail of sailing legends
The large volume of the Studio Warehouse makes it possible to present large-size objects. Among them are the legends of Polish sailing: “Kumka IV”, “Opty” and “Dal”. Welded sheet and section steel sailing yacht “Kumka IV” of 1937. is an extremely valuable testimony to innovative Polish technical thought. It was one of the world’s first vessels with a welded hull, which allowed for shorter construction time and a significant reduction in costs. The designer of the “Toad” series was Prof. Tadeusz Soltyk, aeronautical designer (creator of the “Iskra” jet aircraft), who in the Second Republic led the preparations of Polish sailors for the Olympics. (See The One Who Gave Us Wings, “Technical Review” 6/2017).
The CKWS could not miss the legendary Polish sailing yachts: “Opty” (designed by Eng. Leon Tumiłowicz), with which Leonid Teliga was the first Pole to circumnavigate alone in l. 1967-69, the globe and the “Dal” on which Andrzej Bohomolec, Jerzy Świechowski and Jan Witkowski crossed the Atlantic in 1933/1934. As a symbol of maritime Poland, it was donated to the Museum of Science and Industry in Chicago, from where it was returned to Poland after less than half a century.
Guinness in Tczew
Divided into 3 stages (bicycle, river and cross-country), the “Solo Amazon Expedition” involved Marcin Gienieczko traveling alone across South America, from the Pacific to the Atlantic. During it, he was the only person in the world to cover a distance of 5573 kilometers alone in a canoe, navigating the waters of the Amazon, a new Guinness World Record. The canoe has been donated to the CKWS collection, and was also recently joined by an official certificate.
Leba will charm us
The Baltic escapade should end in Leba to learn about Kashubian boatbuilding crafts and the history of fishing with traditional methods. Old boats are gathered around the Fisheries Museum – in the form of an open-air museum. A special attraction is the museum’s tower, which offers an unforgettable view of Hel’s harbor. We should add that the price of a regular ticket to this museum, which is 20 zlotys, also includes entrance to the viewing platform.
Marek Bielski
