Vrouw Maria Wreck

A Dutch two-masted merchantman (snow) that sank in a storm in the Finnish archipelago near the Gulf of Finland in October 1771 while carrying goods, including art reportedly bought by Catherine the Great of Russia. The wreck was found in 1999 by Rauno Koivusaari off Nauvo (Nagu), Finland, sitting upright and well preserved in cold Baltic water at about 41 meters. It is protected under Finnish heritage law; the wreck has been surveyed but not excavated, and the cargo’s survival remains under study.