Emergencies and World Disasters
They Saved a Ship for 333 Years-Will It Collapse Back to Dust?
26 min•28 juli 2026
Om avsnittet
They Saved a Ship for 333 Years-Will It Collapse Back to Dust?
The thought that pollution once preserved a 333-year-old warship is unsettling: Stockholm’s industrial contaminants killed shipworms and kept the Vasa intact on the harbor floor for centuries, but once raised it began to “die” again as oxygen returned. How do decades-long chemical treatments like PEG spraying fight the very process that saving the ship restarts, and can they ever be finished?
In this episode, we present the conservation histories of the Vasa, the Mary Rose, and the Kefermarkt altar, outlining the methods, timelines, and unanswered risks that accompany long-term treatment of waterlogged wood. What do years of polyethylene glycol sprays, staged molecular weight changes, and historical pesticide experiments teach us about saving-and possibly losing-these artifacts?
Person: A. Stifter
Event: Vasa salvage spray began in 1994
Date: Vasa spray treatment duration 1994-2011 (17 years)
Location: Stockholm harbor
Event: Mary Rose formal conservation began in 1993
- The Vasa remained submerged for 333 years before salvage.
- Conservators sprayed the Vasa with polyethylene glycol continuously for 17 years (1994-2011).
- The Mary Rose used low molecular weight PEG from 1993-2003 and higher molecular weight PEG from 2003-2010.
- A. Stifter treated the Kefermarkt altar with table salt between 1852 and 1855.
- Councillor Bolle applied petroleum and hexachloroethane to the altar between 1916 and 1918, followed by hydrogen cyanide in 1929.
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© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].
The thought that pollution once preserved a 333-year-old warship is unsettling: Stockholm’s industrial contaminants killed shipworms and kept the Vasa intact on the harbor floor for centuries, but once raised it began to “die” again as oxygen returned. How do decades-long chemical treatments like PEG spraying fight the very process that saving the ship restarts, and can they ever be finished?
In this episode, we present the conservation histories of the Vasa, the Mary Rose, and the Kefermarkt altar, outlining the methods, timelines, and unanswered risks that accompany long-term treatment of waterlogged wood. What do years of polyethylene glycol sprays, staged molecular weight changes, and historical pesticide experiments teach us about saving-and possibly losing-these artifacts?
Person: A. Stifter
Event: Vasa salvage spray began in 1994
Date: Vasa spray treatment duration 1994-2011 (17 years)
Location: Stockholm harbor
Event: Mary Rose formal conservation began in 1993
- The Vasa remained submerged for 333 years before salvage.
- Conservators sprayed the Vasa with polyethylene glycol continuously for 17 years (1994-2011).
- The Mary Rose used low molecular weight PEG from 1993-2003 and higher molecular weight PEG from 2003-2010.
- A. Stifter treated the Kefermarkt altar with table salt between 1852 and 1855.
- Councillor Bolle applied petroleum and hexachloroethane to the altar between 1916 and 1918, followed by hydrogen cyanide in 1929.
To listen to this podcast ad-free and access premium episodes, try our subscription with a 14-day free trial at obomedia.com.
© 2026 OBOMEDIA. All rights reserved.
This episode and its content (audio, text, and related materials) are the exclusive property of OBOMEDIA and are protected by applicable copyright laws. Reproduction, distribution, editing, or commercial use, in whole or in part, without prior written permission from OBOMEDIA is prohibited. For permissions, licensing, and business inquiries: [email protected].
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