Believed to have sunk in a storm during the 15th century, this wooden ship measures 33 feet long and 10 feet wide. Now, researchers are hoping that this rare find can provide insights into the little-understood traditions of medieval shipbuilding.
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceThe medieval ship unearth in Barcelona , now calledCiutadella Ibecause it was find near Ciutadella Park .
The Spanish metropolis of Barcelona has a prospicient and majestic sailing history . As such , it was n’t a full surprisal when archaeologist reveal the remains of a medieval boat beneath the city ’s formerMercat de Peix(fish market ) .
Hidden 18 feet beneath the ground for hundred , this shipwreck is now revealing valuable information about both medieval shipbuilding technique and how the coast of Barcelona has changed over the centuries .
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceThe medieval ship unearthed in Barcelona, now calledCiutadella Ibecause it was found near Ciutadella Park.
The Discovery Of A Medieval Ship In Downtown Barcelona
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceArchaeologists play on theCiutadella Ishipwreck , which was get beneath the web site of Barcelona ’s former Pisces grocery store .
As theBarcelona City Council Archaeology Service explain in a program line , the medieval wreck was discovered in April 2025 . This fifteenth or 16th - hundred vessel was come across near Barcelona ’s former fish market , Mercat de Peix , which is being developed into a center for biomedicine and biodiversity .
A “ derelict ” — a ship or wreck embrace by sediment over time — the remains were discovered 18 groundwork beneath the ground . It ’s 33 feet long and 10 feet wide , contains 30 curved wooden ribs and at least seven hull board , and is held together with both wooden and iron nail .
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceArchaeologists working on theCiutadella Ishipwreck, which was found beneath the site of Barcelona’s former fish market.
This variety of construction is know as “ skeleton ” construction . It was popular during the Middle Ages in the Mediterranean and throughout the relief of Europe initiate in the mid-15th one C .
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceAn overhead purview of the shipwreck , which could now provide valuable information about mediaeval shipbuilding methods .
The ship , which has now been dubbedCiutadella I , after the nearby Ciutadella Park , is in very slight condition . The Barcelona Archaeology Service reports that its wooden frame , soak with water , has been kept handle with sand to prevent it from dry out and degrading . Eventually , the ship will be transferred to a special facility that can properly protect and preserve it .
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceAn overhead view of the shipwreck, which could now provide valuable information about medieval shipbuilding methods.
But how did theCiutadella Iend up 18 feet beneath the ground ?
The Changing Shape Of Barcelona In Recent Centuries
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceArchaeologists run on theCiutadella I.
As the Barcelona Archaeology Service reports , the find of theCiutadella Iillustrates just how much Barcelona has changed over the centuries . After artificial wharfage were construct in the urban center in 1439 , and a centuries - old sand bar vanished , the coastline changed dramatically . Coastal drift and storms cause the beach to advance and force sand into place that were once cross with water .
The ship , possibly lapse or abandoned , was then submerse . Such an occurrence is rare , and theCiutadella Iis only the 2d example of a seagoing vessel found in Barcelona . In 2008 , a fifteenth - C ship named theBarceloneta Iwas find during excavations near the Estació de França train station .
Barcelona City Council Archaeology ServiceArchaeologists working on theCiutadella I.
“ The discovery of ‘ Ciutadella I ’ complement and enriches the knowledge obtained with ‘ Barceloneta I , ' ” said the Barcelona City Council Archaeology Service , “ offering a more complete imagination of the diversity and complexity of mediaeval marine activity in Barcelona , and consolidating the city as a key point of the trade routes of the meter . ”
Elsewhere across Europe in recent years , century - old ships have besides been witness buried just beneath the ground . In 2020,three Roman warshipswere found stuck in clay in Serbia . And in 2022 , archeologist came acrossa medieval cargo ship in Tallinn , Estonia .
Meanwhile , the ship attain in Barcelona is not the only find that archaeologists have made during excavations at the site . They also obtain an air raid shelter that was built in 1938 to protect the previous Central Pisces securities industry from bombings , social organisation associated with the 18th - 100 Bourbon Citadel , and structures associated with the 19th - hundred Old Fish Market .
And with construction still in advancement , there may be more discoveries yet to occur .
After understand about the medieval shipwreck that was receive in the middle of Barcelona , discover the story behindnine of the most famous shipwrecksof all metre . Then , get a line about some of the world’smost historic deep-set ships .
