Unexpected Medieval Shipwreck Unearthed in Lake Constance Stuns Archaeologists

Off the shore of Lindau in Lake Constance, underwater archaeologists have uncovered wooden fragments of a shipwreck that prove to be considerably older than first thought.

“The tip came from a recreational diver familiar with the area, who had already suspected a wreck might lie there,” says Prof. Dr. Tobias Pflederer, a research diver in underwater archaeology, in response to a Euronews inquiry. By day he works as a cardiologist in Kaufbeuren and holds a professorship at the University of Erlangen; he also serves as honorary president of the Bavarian Society for Underwater Archaeology (BGfU).

“What thrilled us most was being able to confirm that the wooden remains belong to a shipwreck. Initially we couldn’t rule out that they were merely stray timber. However, once several frames and hull sections emerged from the lakebed, the interpretation became obvious,” Pflederer explains.

A frame is a load‑bearing component of a boat, ship or aircraft; linked frames constitute the ship’s ribs, forming its hull. The BGfU’s underwater archaeologists have previously uncovered several, much heavier dugout canoes in Lake Constance and Lake Chiemsee, some of which are exhibited at the Deutsches Museum in Munich.

The newly identified medieval vessel measures roughly eight to twelve metres in length, with a hull width of about three metres.

The frames and other wooden elements were located off Lindau, in Germany’s largest inland lake, near the Austrian border; the opposite shore lies in Switzerland.

Even before the recent heatwaves, Lake Constance’s water levels had already dropped to a historic low last year.

A shipwreck from the late Middle Ages

The age of the wreck truly astonished the team. “We had anticipated a modern‑era date. Although a handful of late‑medieval wrecks are known from Lake Constance—only four to date—this find adds valuable data on shipbuilding and navigation during that period.”

Analysis of a small wood sample, conducted in consultation with the Bavarian State Office for the Preservation of Monuments, placed the wreck between AD 1420 and 1450, a result also reported by the Swabian newspaper.

Pflederer cautions against overstating the discovery: “Thus far we have conducted only two dives, limited to an initial survey—producing orthophotos and taking a wood sample from one frame. Radiocarbon (C14) dating will allow us to assign the wreck to the 15th century AD.”

Salvaging the wreck would be extremely costly

Unlike the spectacular Roman‑era cargo recovered from Lake Neuchâtel in Switzerland, there are presently no plans to raise the Lake Constance wreck.

Pflederer notes, “Salvage requires professional conservation and preservation of every fragment, which is immensely expensive. Leaving the wreck submerged—ideally beneath a protective sediment layer—is far more effective for preservation. Discussions are underway about a modest, targeted excavation to document the ship’s construction methods and exact dimensions.”

Further details on the society’s projects across various lakes are available on the Bavarian Society for Underwater Archaeology website (source in German) (BGfU). The organization comprises roughly 100 members, most of them volunteers, including professional archaeologists, trained research divers, students, seasoned recreational divers, and enthusiasts who pursue underwater archaeology as a hobby.

Additional sources • Swabian newspaper

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