Skansen is a 75 acre open-air museum and zoo in Stockholm. Hugely popular during the summer, unfortunately mostly closed down off season. It was founded in in 1891, to bring all the culture of Sweden to one location and celebrate it. 150 buildings from all over the country were disassembled then reassembled in Skansen to allow Swedes and all people to observe how the Swedish lived and worked over the centuries. All but three are original. Unfortunately, all were closed but a couple, they look great from the outside, but during the tourist season, they have re-enactors all over to explain what your are seeing and experiencing. So….we spent more time in the zoo, and with the lemurs.
The Vasa was launched in 1628. The ship foundered and sank after sailing about 1,400 yd. into her maiden voyage on 10 August 1628. She fell into obscurity after most of her valuable bronze cannons were salvaged in the 17th century until she was located again in the late 1950s in a busy shipping lane just outside the Stockholm harbor. Salvaged with a largely intact hull in 1961. And placed in the current museum in 1988.
Note on the right equipment to continual replace the rusted steel bolts with carbon fiber/stainless steel bolts
Look at the people on the left for an idea how huge this ship is.
98% of what you see is original. Typically in historical reconstructions, you are lucky to see 30-40% original.
It was richly decorated as a symbol of the king's ambitions for Sweden and himself, and upon completion was one of the most powerfully armed vessels in the world. Vasa was dangerously unstable however, due to too much weight in the upper structure of the hull and too narrow of a keel. Despite this lack of stability she was ordered to sea and foundered only a few minutes after encountering a first wind stronger than a breeze.
The typical crew numbers for a ship of this size is 400, however on the “shake down” cruise only 150 were on board. Of these 30 were killed, 15 remains were found.
They are slowly “rebuilding” the facial features of the crew using computer modeling. Very lifelike.
An incredible exhibition detailing its construction, short voyage, recovery and restoration. One of the highlights of our vacation.
Finally, our last dinner in Stockholm, “The Plank”, a classic Swedish favorite, a steak smothered in unknown gravy surrounded by potatoes. Awesome.
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