VOC Shipwreck Archive
Located Excavated VOC Ships with vessel, voyage, bibliographic, media & museum details
VOC Shipwrecks Found Excavated
| VOC Shipwrecks found & excavated - background & voyage details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Voyage # | Year Built | Year Sunk | Ship Name | Chamber | Captain | Last | Tonnage | Guns | Crew | Dimensions | Rigging | Ship Type | Shipyard | Voyage Type | From | Departure Date | To | Arrival Date | Cause of Incident | Fate / Incident | Date Lost | Casualties - Survivors + |
Depth | Location | Country | Latitude | Longitude | Year Found | Wikipedia | Wrecksite.eu | Website | MaSS.cultureelerfgoed.nl | Comments |
| 5077.2 | 1602 | 1609 | Mauritius | Amsterdam | Klaasz., Gerrit | 350 | 700 | 144 | Spiegelretourschip | Homeward Bound | Bantam | 27/12/1607 | 10m | Cap lopez, Port Gentil, Gabon | Africa - West | 01°12,600'S | 08°44,667'E | 1985 | Wrecksite.eu - Mauritius 1609 | MaSS - Mauritius 1609 | From Bantam to Patani to take over the cargo of a Portuguese
prize-ship, and lost on the coast of Guinea. In 1985, the wreck was discovered by accident by a French oil company in 10 metres of water. The ship's bell, China porcelain and zinc disks were salvaged. Even a very large quantity of pepper was found, her main cargo. |
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| 5100.3 | 1601 | 1613 | Witte Leeuw | Amsterdam | Bloem, Roelof Simonsz. de | 540 | 25 | 100 | Jacht - Yacht | Amsterdam | Homeward Bound | Bantam | 05/12/1612 | lost in action | burnt in action | 13/03/1613 | 38m | James Bay, St Helena | St Helena | 15°55,035'S | 05°43,220'W | 1977 | Wrecksite.eu - Witte Leeuw 1613 | MaSS - Witte Leeuw 1613 | Burnt in a fight with a Portuguese carrack off St. Helena,
13-06-1613; a part of the crew sailed back to Holland aboard the VLISSINGEN
and the BANTAM (5098). Witte Leeuw was engaged in a battle with two Portuguese carracks, whereunder the Almeida (Capt. Dom Geronimo de Almeida) and was lost off Saint Helens on June 13th, 1613. They formed part of a convoy returning to Holland with spices, Ming porcelain and over 1.300 diamonds. Witte Leeuw blew up when her magazine exploded. Part of her crew was saved and returned on board of the Vlissingen and the Bantam. She was found by the Belgian diver Robert Sténuit in 1977 in the Bay of Jamestown in 38m deep water. He identified her with one of her cannons, found 7 of her 25 cannons, tons of pepper, beautiful well preserved artifacts, but no diamonds. |
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| 5105.2 | 1606 | 1615 | Banda | Amsterdam | Thijsz., Roelof / Pieter Both | 400 | 800 | 100 | Length 42m | 3 masts | Spiegelretourschip | Homeward Bound | Bantam | 27/12/1614 | gale/storm | ran aground | 06/03/1615 | 30 - | Flic-en-Flacq, Mauritius | Mauritius | 20°16,400'S | 57°22,183'E | 1979 | Wrecksite.eu - Banda 1615 | MaSS - Banda 1615 | Return fleet (5105-5108) with Pieter Both abord the Banda; this
ship foundered on a reef in a hurricane near Mauritius, 30 deaths, including
Pieter Both, 06/03/1615. Banda was a merchant vessel that sailed for the Dutch East India Company (VOC) during the early seventeenth century. Banda was part of a fleet of three other ships returning to Patria from Bantam. The three other ships in the fleet were Delft, Gelderlandand Geunieerde Provincien, and the commander of the fleet was Dutch Admiral Pieter Both. On the night of March 5, 1615, the fleet was hit by a hurricane, and Banda struck a reef near Mauritius, while she was seeking shelter in the bay of a river. Thirty deaths were reported, among them the fleet commander Pieter Both. Two other ships of the fleet were lost, and only Delft'made it back to the Netherlands. This was an important loss for the VOC, and led to the naming of the highest peak of the island after Pieter Both, the Pieter Bothsberg. Lost whilst at anchor in a violent storm. The wreck was discovered in 1980 by Patrick Lize en Jacques Dumas. |
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| 351.1 | 1627 | 1627 | Campen | Amsterdam | 150 | 300 | 30 | 160 | 3 masts | Jacht | Amsterdam | Outward Bound | Texel | 12/10/1627 | gale/storm | ran aground | 23/10/1627 | 0 | Needles Rocks, Isle of Wight | UK | 50 39.734'N | 1 35.468'W | 1979 | Wrecksite.eu - Campen 1627 | MaSS - Kampen 1627 | The wreck was salvaged in 1627-1628 days by diver 'Jacob de Duiker' and 2 chests with 2365 Reales were saved. In 1979 the wreck was re-discovered and this time, about 8.000 Reales and Leeuwendaalders were salvaged. | |||||||
| 372.1 | 1628 | 1629 | Batavia | Amsterdam | Jakobsz., Adriaan | 600 | 24 | 341 | Length 160 ft (48.8 m) Width 36 ft (11 m) Draft 12 ft (3.7 m) |
Spiegelretourschip | Amsterdam | Outward Bound | Texel | 29/10/1628 | ran aground | ran aground | 04/06/1629 | 40- | 5.5m | Morning Reef, Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia | Australia | 28°29,499'S | 113°47,516'E | 1963 | Wrecksite.eu - Batavia 1629 | MaSS - Batavia 1629 | The maiden voyage of Batavia ended in disaster after she left
for Batavia in the Dutch East Indies on October 29, 1628. The skipper was
Adriaen Jacobsz, but the overall commander (commandeur), a title which
designates the senior VOC officer onboard, was senior merchant Frans
Pelsaert. During the voyage, part of the crew sought to mutiny and take over
the ship, and it seems that the skipper may also have been involved. The
mutiny failed, and Batavia struck a reef on June 4, 1628, some 60 km off the
coast of West Australia (Beacon Island). She had a cargo of trade goods and supplies, building blocks for portico and specie and 38 passengers and a crew of 303. Most of the crew and passengers, 322 individuals, got off the ship and made camp on some small islands. Skipper Jacobsz, merchant Pelsaert, 40 officers, some crew members and passengers, left the wreck site in a longboat heading north in search of Batavia (Djakarta) and help. It took them 33 days to reach Batavia. Pelsaert got a ship, the Zaandam (Saerdam), to rescue the other survivors. He arrived at the islands 2 months after leaving Batavia, only to discover that another bloody mutiny had taken place amongst those left behind, reducing their numbers by at least a hundred. |
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| 634.1 | 1640 | Rob | Amsterdam | 100 | Pinas / Pinnace | Texel | 05/01/1640 | 05/01/1640 | Burgzand Noord, Texel | Netherlands | Wrecksite.eu - Rob 1640 | MaSS - Rob 1640 | Wrecked in a storm when ready to leave Texel, 05-01-1640. | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 760.3 | 1648 | 1653 | Lastdrager | Amsterdam | Johannes Camphuijs | 320 | 640 | 24 | 120 | Fluit | Texel | 09/02/1653 | ran aground | ran aground | 02/03/1653 | 26+ | Cruss of Ness in the Bluemull Sound, Yell, Shetland Isles | UK | 60°42,333'N | 00°59,750'W | 1971 | Wrecksite.eu - Lastdrager 1653 | Canmore - Lastrager 1653 | MaSS
Lastdrager 1653 |
After departure from Texel to Goeree. From there 09-12 back to
Texel because of a lost rudder. Departure from Texel 09-02-1653. The ship was
wrecked near the Shetland Islands on 02-03 (reefs of Bluemull Sound; 26
survivors. The Lastdrager (in English: load carrier) was a merchant ship sailing for the Dutch East India Company (VOC). The ship was not built at the shipyards of the VOC, but was purchased in 1648. Built: Amsterdam, Uilenburg?, pre 1648. She had made two voyages to the East before she was lost off Yell on the 2nd of March 1653. She had struck the reefs of the Bluemull Sound. 26 people survived the loss of the Lastdrager. The event was documented by one of the 26 survivors, Johannes Camphuys. He was 19 at the time. He wrote a dramatic account on the stranding of the ship and his own survival. He finally reached the East and after years got the function of Gouverneur-Generaal, the highest function that could be reached within the company VOC. There were approx. 2746 complete and fragmentary artefacts such as: navigational tools, surgical instruments and everyday artefacts such as spoons, jewellery items and clay pipes. Some remarkable finds were golfclubs and small arms. The bow of the wreck was found by Robert Stenuit in 1971. The stern part drifted away & has not been found. The majority of the items recovered from the wreck were individually sold at an auction at Sotheby's. This auction took place on November 8th, 1973. |
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| 833.2 | 1653 | 1656 | Vergulde Draeck | Amsterdam | Albertsz., Pieter | 130 | 260 | 193 | Length: 41.8 m Beam: 9.8m Draft : 4.1m |
Jacht | Amsterdam | Outward Bound | Texel | ran aground | ran aground | 28/04/1656 | 118 - 75 + |
Ledge Point, Sudyland | Australia | 31°13,269'S | 115°21,572'E | Wrecksite.eu - Vergulde Draeck 1 | Mass - Vergulde Draeck 1656 | The Vergulde Draeck sailed in October 1655 from Holland to
the East Indies, bound for Batavia, what is now Jakarta, with a cargo valued
at around fl. 185,000. From the Cape of Good Hope, she had to travel around
5000 miles east before turning north to head for the East Indies. This route,
with the sharp left turn near Australia, was known as the Brouwers
route. Unfortunately, The Vergulde Draeck sailed too far east and met the Western Australian coast so a serious navigational error. On the 28th April, 1656, she struck a reef near the Suydland (Australia) and broke into two pieces. Only 75 of the original 193 men on board made it to the shore. Seven sailors were sent to Batavia in an open boat in search of help. They reached Batavia after 41 days. The Dutch authorities sent two ships to retrieve the cargo (minted silver along with cargo worth 90,000 euros) and the crew, but the ships did not succeed. Two more expeditions were sent, but both failed to recover any members of the missing crew. |
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| 1662 | 1664 | Kennemerland | Amsterdam | 950 | 150 | Fregat - Frigate | Bought | Outward Bound | Texel | gale/storm | ran aground | 20/12/1664 | 147 - 3 + |
3m | Stoura Stack, Out Skerries, Shetland Isles | UK | 60°25,167'N | 00°45,121'W | Wrecksite.eu - Kennemerland 166 | Bougtht 1662. | |||||||||||||
| 1682 | 1686 | Princesse Maria | Amsterdam | 570 | 262 | Length: 48.8 m Beam: 11.9m Draft : 5.6m |
Fregat - Frigate | Zeeland (Middleburg | Outward Bound | Texel | ran aground | ran aground | 04/01/1686 | Isles of Scilly | UK | 49°52,319'N | 06°24,154'W | 1973 | Wrecksite.eu - Princesse Maria 16 | On 04/01/1686, PRINSES MARIA, on voyage from Texel, was lost off the Scilly Islands. Wreck was looted at the time of the disaster and discovered deeply buried in the sands in 1973. Note the place of wrecking is known as Silver Carn. | |||||||||||||
| 1692 | 1694 | Dageraad | Jan Tak | 140 | Length: 30.5 m Beam: 8.2m Draft : 3.2m |
Zeeland (Middleburg | Outward Bound | Wielingen | 18/01/1693 | gale/storm | ran aground | Dec 1693 / 20/01/1694 | NW side of Robben Island | Africa - Southern | 33°47,783'S | 18°21,533'E | Wrecksite.eu - Dageraad 1694 | Dageraad was lost in a storm, on her mission to salvage the shipwrecked Gulden Buys, off the West coast of Robben Island. | |||||||||||||||
| 1698 | Huis te Kraijenstein | Cape Peninsula | Africa - Southern | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1693 | 1702 | Meresteyn | Amsterdam | Subbing, Jan | 826 | 225 | Length: 44.2 m Beam: 11m Draft : 4.6m |
Fregat - Frigate | Amsterdam | Outward Bound | Texel | 04/10/1701 | ran aground | ran aground | 03/04/1702 | 126 - | 7m | off Jutten Island, Saldanha Bay, Capetown | Africa - Southern | 33°05,250'S | 17°57,334'E | Wrecksite.eu - Meresteyn 1702 | Totally exposed to the elements, the wreck was quickly smashed to pieces. She drifted ashore on the south side of Jutter Island & broke up in the surf. For 250 years coins 7 small objects have been washed ashjore. Late 1971 two divers recovered a large amount of specie. | ||||||||||
| 1698 | 1711 | Liefde | Meikens Barend | 500 | 32 | 300 | Length: 48.8m | Fregat - Frigate | Homeward Bound | gale/storm | ran aground | 07/11/1711 | 299 - | 1m | Island of Housay (southern tip), Out Skerries, Shetland Isles | UK | 60°24,634'N | 00°47,737'W | |||||||||||||||
| 1701 | 1713 | Zuytdorp / Zuiddorp | Zeeland (Middleburg) | Wijsvliet Marinus | 1152 | 250 | Length: 54.3m | Fregat - Frigate | Zeeland (Middleburg | Outward Bound | Wielingen | 01/08/1711 | ran aground | June 1712 | 225 - | Shark Bay, Western Australia | Australia | 27°11,167'S | 113°56,187'E | 1927 | Wrecksite.eu - Zuytdorp 1713 | On 1 August 1711 Zuytdorp (meaning ‘South village’) was dispatched from the Netherlands to the trading port of Batavia. It never arrived at its destination. No search was undertaken, since there was no idea where the ship was lost. The crew were never heard from again. In 1834, Aborigines told a farmer near the recently colonised Perth about a wreck some distance to the North. With references to a wreck and coins on the beach, details strongly pointed to the Zuytdorp, however the colonists presumed it was a recent wreck and sent rescue parties who failed to find the wreck or any survivors. | |||||||||||
| 1708 | 1713 | Bennebroek | 800 | 3 masts | Homeward Bound | Ceylon | 20/12/1710 | ran aground | Jan 1711 | Struys BayKeiskamma River, Ciskei | Africa - Southern | 34°43,333'S | 20°07,250'E | ||||||||||||||||||||
| 1723 | 1724 | Slot ter Hooghe | Zeeland (Middleburg) | Boghoute Steven | 425 | 254 | Length: 48.8m | Spiegelretourschip | Zeeland (Middleburg | Outward Bound | Rammekens | 31/10/1724 | ran aground | 19/11/1724 | 221 - | NW side of Porto Santo | Madeira | 33°05,78'N | 16°19,75'W | Wrecksite.eu - Slot ter Hooghe 17 | |||||||||||||
| 1724 | 1725 | Akerendam | Nicolaas De Roy | 850 | 200 | Length: 44.2 m | 3 masts | Spiegelretourschip | ran aground | 08/03/1725 | 200 - | 20m | Alesund | Norway | 62°24,333'N | 05°35,117'E | 1972 | Wrecksite.eu - Akerrndam 1725 | Akerendam
(Capt. Nicolaas de Roy) was lost on her maiden voyage from Texel to India on
8th March 1725. She was off course in a violent storm in the night of 7/8
March and struck the Island of Rundøy (Rondoe), in Norway. The Akerendam was found by amateur divers in 1972 and they have salvaged the very valuable cargo of gold coins. She lies only 100m away from the coast in depths ranging between 12 and 20 metres. |
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| 1727 | Zeewyk | Houtman Abrolhos Islands, Western Australia | Australia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1727 | Risdam | Mersing | Malaysia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1728 | Adelaar | Barra, Outer Hebrides | UK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1735 | Vliegent Hart | Schooneveld, Vlissingen | Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1738 | Boot | Prawle Point, South Devon | UK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1740 | Vis | Table Bay | Africa - Southern | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1740 | Rooswijk | Goodwin Sands | UK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1743 | Hollandia | Isles of Scilly | UK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1747 | Reijgersdaal | Springfontein Point | Africa - Southern | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1749 | Amsterdam | Hastings | UK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1752 | Geldermalsen | Riau Archipelago | Indonesia | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1753 | Bredenhof | Mozambique Channel | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1760 | Buitenzorg | Javaruggen, Waddenzee | Netherlands | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1776 | Nieuw Rhoon | Capetown | Africa - Southern | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1781 | Middleburg | Saldanha Bay, Capetown | Africa - Southern | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| 1795 | Zeelelie | Scilly Isles | UK | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| VOC Shipwrecks under investigation - background & voyage details | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Voyage # | Year Built | Year Sunk | Ship Name | Chamber | Captain | Last | Tonnage | Crew | Dimensions | Rigging | Ship Type | Shipyard | Voyage Type | From | Departure Date | To | Arrival Date | Cause of Incident | Fate / Incident | Date Lost | Survivors +/ Deaths - | Depth | Location | Country | Latitude | Longitude | Wikipedia | Wrecksite.eu | Website link | Comments | |||
| 1626 | Schoonhoven | Portugal | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Haarlem | Table Bay | Africa - Southern | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
VOC Shipwrecks Bibliographic Media & Museum details
VOC Shipwrecks Bibliographic Media & Museum details
| Voyage # | Vessel Name | Year Lost | Year Found | Voyage Type | Media Type | Author | Year | Title | Place of Publication | Journal / Publisher | Journal Reference | ISBN | Web Link | Comments |
| 5077.2 | Mauritius | 1609 | 1985 | Homeward Bound | Article | L'Hour, M., Long, L & Reith, E. | 1990 | The wreck of an 'experimental' ship of the 'Oost-Indische Companie': The Mauritius (1609) | IJNA | 19.1: 63-73 | ||||
| Web Page | Archeologie Culture France - Mauritius | |||||||||||||
| Web Page | MaSS - Mauritius | |||||||||||||
| 5100.3 | Witte Leeuw | 1613 | 1976 | Homeward Bound | Book | Pijl-Ketel, van der C. L. | 1982 | The ceramic load of the 'Witte Leeuw' (1613) | Amsterdam | Rijksmuseum | 90-9309-6 | |||
| Article | Stenuit, R. | 1978 | The sunken treasure of St. Helena | National Geographic | 154.4: 562-76 | |||||||||
| Article | Stenuit, R. | 1977 | De 'Witte Leeuw'. De schipbreuk van een schip van de V.O.C. in 1613 en het onderwateronderzoek naar het wrak in 1976. | Amsterdam | Bulletin van het Rijksmuseum | |||||||||
| 5105.2 / 0146.2 | Banda | 1615 | Homeward Bound | |||||||||||
| 351.1 | Campen | 1627 | 1979 | Outward Bound | Article | Larn, R. (ed) Needles Underwater Archaeology Group (NUAG) | 1985 | The wreck of the Dutch East Indiaman Campen on the Needles rocks, Isle of Wight, 1627 - Part 1 | IJNA | 14.1: 1-31 | ||||
| Article | Larn, R. (ed) Needles Underwater Archaeology Group (NUAG) | 1985 | The wreck of the Dutch East Indiaman Campen on the Needles rocks, Isle of Wight, 1627 - Part 2 | IJNA | 14.2: 97-118 | |||||||||
| Documentary | Silver Needles - VOC Campen 1627 | 1981 | Silver Needles - VOC Campen 1627 | |||||||||||
| Batavia | 1629 | 1963 | Outward Bound | |||||||||||
| Rob | 1640 | |||||||||||||
| Lastdrager | 1653 | Article | Stenuit, R. | 1974 | Early relics of the VOC trade from Shetland: The wreck of the Flute Lastdrager lost of Yell, 1653. | IJNA | 3.2: 213-56 | |||||||
| Vergulde Draeck | 1656 | |||||||||||||
| Kennemerland | 1664 | |||||||||||||
| Princesse Maria | 1686 | |||||||||||||
| Dageraad | 1694 | |||||||||||||
| Huis te Kraijenstein | 1698 | |||||||||||||
| Meresteyn | 1702 | |||||||||||||
| Liefde | 1711 | |||||||||||||
| Zuytdorp | 1713 | |||||||||||||
| Bennebroek | 1713 | |||||||||||||
| Slot ter Hooghe | 1724 | |||||||||||||
| Akerendam | 1725 | |||||||||||||
| Zeewyk | 1727 | |||||||||||||
| Risdam | 1727 | |||||||||||||
| Adelaar | 1728 | |||||||||||||
| Vliegent Hart | 1735 | |||||||||||||
| Boot | 1738 | |||||||||||||
| Vis | 1740 | |||||||||||||
| Rooswijk | 1740 | |||||||||||||
| Hollandia | 1743 | |||||||||||||
| Reijgersdaal | 1747 | |||||||||||||
| Amsterdam | 1749 | |||||||||||||
| Geldermalsen | 1752 | |||||||||||||
| Bredenhof | 1753 | |||||||||||||
| Buitenzorg | 1760 | |||||||||||||
| Nieuw Rhoon | 1776 | |||||||||||||
| Middleburg | 1781 | |||||||||||||
| Zeelelie | 1795 | |||||||||||||