Today my History of Sweden class had our field study to the Vasa Museum. This was one of the places in Stockholm I was most excited to visit, primarily for the history lesson but also just to see this massive ship. The Vasa ship was commissioned in the 1620s by King Gustav II Adolf (Gustavus Adolphus), and it was supposed to be a symbol of naval power in the Baltic for Sweden. However, it sank in the harbor on its first voyage in 1628. Now, it serves as the focal point for this museum, and it is one of the most impressive and most challenging preservation projects of the modern day. Here’s some pictures I took of my favorite parts of the museum:
The very first sight upon entering the museum: the towering expanse of the Vasa ship 
A view of the ship’s deck from the highest floor 
The rear of the ship, covered in intricate carvings depicting images from Swedish history and Greco-Roman mythology 
A close-up of the lions and Swedish coat of arms on the rear of the ship. You can also clearly see which parts of the ship were recently restored and which are original. 
A full-color model of the Vasa ship at 1/10 scale 
Another model of the ship depicting how the narrow construction and the double gun decks led to an unstable design that made sinking inevitable 
A replica of the inside of the gun decks. We were able to walk inside, and it was extremely cramped, even for me, and I was actually short enough to walk under the beams 
A map of the area at the time, featuring major cities and naval powers 
Some of the more elaborate pottery recovered from the ship 
“Mess kits” used by the common sailors 
Backgammon boards and dice recovered from the ship 
Samples of pigments used at the time. Residues on sections of the wood hint at what color they would have been painted
Finding Home in Stockholm 