A team of archaeologists has announced the discovery of a “unique” cache of well-preserved spices, from threads of saffron to peppercorns and ginger, on the wreckage of a royal ship that sank off Sweden’s Baltic coast more than 500 years ago, Reuters reports.

The wreck of the ship Gribshund, owned by King Hans of Denmark and Norway, has been off the coast of Ronneby since 1495, when it is believed to have caught fire and sunk while the monarch was ashore during a political meeting in Sweden.

Rediscovered by amateur divers in the 1960s, it has been the subject of sporadic excavations in recent years. Previous dives have brought to the surface large objects such as a galleon or parts of a wooden structure. Recently, excavations led by Brendan Foley, a specialist in archeology at Lund University, discovered spices buried in the sediments left on the ship.

“The Baltic Sea is amazing — it’s low oxygen, low temperature, low salinity, so many organic elements are preserved in the Baltic Sea that wouldn’t be preserved anywhere else in the global ocean system,” Foley said. “But finding such spices is an extraordinary thing.”

Spices were then a symbol of aristocratic social status, as only the wealthy could afford goods such as saffron or cloves imported from outside Europe. The spices probably accompanied King Hans on his journey to Sweden.

Mikael Larsson, a researcher at Lund University who studied the finds, said: “This is the only archaeological context where we have found saffron. That is why it is unique and special.” (Source Agerpres)