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The Second Nordic War was a disastrous time for Poland as hordes of Swedes invaded the country in 1655. Although Sweden had one of Europe's most powerful armies, King Karl X Gustav had little to pay his warriors with. They therefore plundered much of the wealth they found in Poland. Of Warsaw's 20,000 inhabitants, only 2,000 remained when the Swedes withdrew.
Historians believe that the plan was to transport the booty via the river to the city of Danzig (now Gdansk), where the Vistula flows into the Baltic Sea, and then transport it on to Sweden. One theory is that the wooden warships must have sunk under the heavy load. As the shipwrecks, over the centuries, slowly withered and washed away, the cargo remained buried in the mud of the river, only to be revealed more than 400 years later.
Deputy Director of the Museum of the University of Warsaw is leading the excavation work. He tells the online newspaper that although they have so far uncovered about ten tons of cultural treasures, this is just the beginning. "The boats had a capacity of 50-60 tons each, so we think we will find much more," he says.
The rescue work is difficult right now because the soft, foul-smelling clay at the bottom of the river prevents ordinary lifting equipment from doing the job. The water level must rise again before boats with cranes can be used.
It's not just historical artifacts from the 17th century that have come to light. Unexploded bombs from the Second World War and parts of Jewish tombstones have also been found. Scientists have known about this, but because everything has been deep underwater it has been difficult to bring up. The gravestones will be donated to the Jewish Historical Institute in Warsaw.
