Forssberg, Anna Maria ; Hocker, Fred [red.]

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In life and death

When the Swedish warship Vasa sank on 10 August 1628, it took about thirty people to the bottom. Sailors, their wives and children were all among the victims. The remains of fifteen of them were found when the wreck was raised and excavated. But who were they and what were they doing on board? The Vasa Museum’s researchers have investigated the skeletons in collaboration with experts in dna, osteology, and isotope analysis and have studied how these people were dressed and what they had in their pockets. Now we know not only how they died, but something of how they lived. Meet the couple who died in each other’s arms, the guard in the dark, the boy with the fancy shoes, and many more.

When the Swedish warship Vasa sank on 10 August 1628, it took about thirty people to the bottom. Sailors, their wives and children were all among the victims. The remains of fifteen of them were found when the wreck was raised and excavated. But who were they and what were they doing on board? The Vasa Museum’s researchers have investigated the skeletons in collaboration with experts in dna, osteology, and isotope analysis and have studied how these people were dressed and what they had in their pockets. Now we know not only how they died, but something of how they lived. Meet the couple who died in each other’s arms, the guard in the dark, the boy with the fancy shoes, and many more.