I’m talking about the decrepit old wreck on the right, although you’re forgiven if you thought I meant the one on the left.
The Vasa was the largest warship Sweden had ever launched when it left the shipyard in 1628. About 30 minutes later it hit rough seas, started rolling back and forth, taking on more water with each swing of the pendulem, and sank like a rock within 30 minutes.
The ship was preserved in the cold, brackish water of the Baltic Sea, rediscovered in the 1950s, and refloated in the early ’60s. They built a really interesting museum to house the largely-intact Vasa and did a little restoration work, but mostly left it was it was. The Vasa is so large that the museum that was built to house it is five stories tall. You can go from floor to floor and view the various levels of the ship right at eye level.
I love history museums, but Jamie generally exhibits far less enthusiasm than I do. But even she thought the Vasa Museum was really interesting.