Mirja Arnshav | National Maritime Museum (original) (raw)
Papers by Mirja Arnshav
Unruly Heritage. Archaeologies of the Anthropocene, 2024
Naval mines are a family of explosives with the deadly capacity of breaking ship hulls or shaking... more Naval mines are a family of explosives with the deadly capacity of breaking ship hulls or shaking vessels and human bodies to make their fundamental inner structures collapse. The mines have caused a terrible number of fatalities at sea and have accordingly been conceptualised as devilish devices for their exceptionally cruel actions (Hartmann 1979; Koren 2019: 146). Since their triumph during the Great War, huge efforts have been made to trace and destroy the sea mines but a large number of historic explosives have survived into the present. The ‘post-history’ (González-Ruibal 2019: 132) of these unexploded ordnances, lingering under the surface of the sea, has not gained much attention from archaeologists. Yet, their stubborn presence raises several questions. What agency do they possess and what is their legacy in terms of a latent, unruly, and possibly explosive heritage? What influence do they have on humans, on the marine environment, and on heritage matters? This contribution adds an archaeological approach to discussing the prevailing wartime sea mines with a special focus on the Baltic Sea and Swedish east coast.
Broken bodies places and objects. New perspectives of fragmentation in archaeology, 2023
At first, you hardly see anything but the greenish water surrounding you. But as you follow the g... more At first, you hardly see anything but the greenish water surrounding you. But as you follow the gently sloping seabed downward, round ballast stones and timbers can be discerned. And then, at a depth of six metres, more and more pieces of timber come into sight-the remains of the naval ship Rikswasa, which sank after a fire accident in 1623. The Baltic Sea does not provide the best conditions for scuba diving. It is cold and dark, with turbid waters and a species-poor ecosystem. Nonetheless, it does have one great advantage: due to a unique combination of water quality and the absence of wood-consuming organisms, historic shipwrecks are exceptionally well preserved and can stay more or less intact for several hundreds of years. And as the remains are often uncovered, they are easily explored by anyone with a scuba diving licence. When the Rikswasa was launched in 1599, it was one of the largest ships in the Swedish navy, measuring about 45 m in length (Glete 2009:37). The hull was constructed of tonnes of strong oak timbers, fitted together with bolts and framings to form a hull that would resist stormy seas as well as attacks from enemies. Given this, and also the excellent preservation conditions of the brackish water, you would expect large parts of the massive ship to be preserved, with the exception of the parts of the hull that were consumed by the fire. However, on the sea floor, only a fraction of the ship is left, mostly in fragments. What has happened to the wreck? Where have all the missing parts gone? These strange absences reflect a unique story of purposeful fragmentation. In the 1960s, large amounts of ship timber from the Rikswasa were salvaged 17 A MAN-OF-WAR IN PIECES Fragmenting the Rikswasa of 1599 Mirja Arnshav
Vrak. Havets rika historia., 2023
Journal of Contemporary Archaeology Vol.9 No. 2, 2022
This essay presents the results of a survey of the remains of boats used for escaping from occupi... more This essay presents the results of a survey of the remains of boats used for escaping from occupied Baltic countries to Sweden during World War II. It discusses how such remains can be identified and what knowledge and understanding can be gained from their materiality. Whilst these vessels do cast light on a particular escape situation, they also add to a more general understanding of material culture related to forced migration.
Mobilitet och rörelse. Fältarkeologiska perspektiv, 2022
In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toyscrossed the Baltic Sea... more In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toyscrossed the Baltic Sea as their young owners escaped by boat from occupiedEstonia and Latvia to Sweden. The children’s material culture associated withthe Great Escape is forever soaked with memories of these sea journeys. As partof maritime history, they draw our attention to the children’s representation,and call for a broader take on maritime museums’ collecting.Flyktens materialite
The Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, were occupied no less than three times during t... more The Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, were occupied no less than three times during the Second World War. Faced with a reign of terror, the threat of deportation, and compulsory conscription, over 30,000 people fled over the Baltic Sea to Sweden. On their arrival in Sweden, most escape boats were confiscated by the authorities and in 1945 were returned to the Soviet Union. This study, which began as an attempt to find out about the Baltic escape boats that ended up in Sweden, is inspired by a foreign boat in a small fishing harbour on the island of Gotland. My curiosity was piqued when I caught sight of the boat and heard that it had probably been an escape boat. The purpose of this thesis is to establish which, if any, Baltic escape boats survive in Sweden, in which contexts they remain, and to review their state of preservation, as well as to answer the question of their significance for the memory of the escape. It is an archaeology of the escape and its aftermath, ba...
Tidens landskap. En vänbok till Anders Andrén, 2019
Under havets yta , 2021
Strandvrak i det gotländska fiskeläget Sjaustru. När den lilla träbåten hittades krigsvintern 194... more Strandvrak i det gotländska fiskeläget Sjaustru. När den lilla träbåten hittades krigsvintern 1944 hade andra världskriget pågått i flera år. Under hösten hade flyktingar från Baltikum anlänt så gott som dagligen. Båten låg uppspolad på iskanten och var olycksbådande tom. Evakuering av finska flyktingar hösten 1944. Under krigsåren skeppades tusentals barn mellan Åbo och Stockholm för att undslippa krigets härjningar. Med tiden styrdes evakueringen allt mer om till tågtransporter.
"&am... more ""This paper looks into the mechanisms of an ongoing cultural process within the scope of the heritage management, namely the drive to protect 20th-century shipwrecks. In the 1990s, different stakeholders began to question the fact that wrecks younger than 100 years lacked all sort of legal antiquarian protection. As a response to this, the National Maritime Museums and the Swedish National Heritage Board developed an amendment draft, according to which it would be possible to protect a selection of highly valuable wreck sites under the Heritage Conservation Act. If passed, this amendment will off course have several repercussions on society. However, the focus of this contribution lies on the process itself (i.e. the antiquification of recent wrecks), something which is also worthy of attention. It reflects how heritage is authorized in present day society, and, in a wider context, the issue has bearing on our relationship to ancient remains and its administration throughout history. Drawing from an agency approach and the concept of “the middle ground”, special attention is given to the question of impulses as regards the authorities’ interplay with the public. Also, its response to non-human mediators and the historic setting is being discussed. It is argued that the origin as well as the outcome of the process is due a limited number of persons, whereas additional objectives and interests of different groups have intertwined, affecting the course of events. ""
Journal of Maritime Archaeology, 2014
The issue of marine debris is of a growing concern to present day society. Nonetheless, the occur... more The issue of marine debris is of a growing concern to present day society. Nonetheless, the occurrence of garbage on the sea floor is widely ignored by the marine archaeological body. The main purpose of this article is to discuss archaeological aspects of marine debris of the contemporary past. In particular, the article explores the phenomenon of marine dumping, the active use of raised debris for the sake of education and opinion forming and the human footprint of holiday boating. Drawing from this, it is argued that a maritime garbology—a maritime archaeology that intersects both with the archaeology of the contemporary past and the multidisciplinary field of consumption- and garbage studies—is not only possible but also a promising and relevant field of research.
This paper looks at female presence onboard Swedish naval ships in the 17th century. It is eviden... more This paper looks at female presence onboard Swedish naval ships in the 17th century. It is evident from the material remains as well as from written sources that women did on a regular basis travel on naval ships. These female seafarers came from different social backgrounds and traveled on large as well as small vessels. Some of the women were unmarried, but most of them accompanied a male household member. Based on the written accounts, their presence on board seemed to have been widely accepted by contemporary society. Studies of the two female skeletons found on the Swedish warship Vasa, which sank in 1623 suggest that the presence of these young women were not incidental, but they formed an active part of the ship’s community. The absence of women onboard the warship Kronan which perished in a battle 1676 is understood as evidence that women were seldom on board ships when engaged in battle. However, naval battles were very rare during the whole century. It is argued that by merging the field of naval history with women’s history, a more informed understanding on everyday life in the naval fleet can be obtained.
Facing the Sea. Essays in Swedish Maritime Studies., 2021
In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toys crossed the Baltic Se... more In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toys crossed the Baltic Sea as their young owners escaped by boat from occupied Estonia and Latvia to Sweden. The children's material culture associated with the Great Escape is forever soaked with memories of these sea journeys. As part of maritime history, they draw our attention to the children's representation, and call for a broader take on maritime museums' collecting.
Aktuell marinarkeologi, 2020
Journal of conflict archaeology, 2020
To cite this article: Mirja Arnshav (2020): 'The sea shall have our weapons': small arms and forc... more To cite this article: Mirja Arnshav (2020): 'The sea shall have our weapons': small arms and forced migration across the
Under slutet av andra världskriget anlände mer än 10 000 baltiska flyktingar, mestadels estländar... more Under slutet av andra världskriget anlände mer än 10 000 baltiska flyktingar, mestadels estländare men också hundratals letter, till Gotland. Östergarnslandet på östra Gotland hörde till de områden som mottog flest kontingenter av flyktingar. En av flyktingbåtarna strandade på Östergarnsholm. Spillrorna av båten är fortfarande synlig på flera ställen på ön.
Sverige är en båtälskande nation. Här finns fler fritids-båtar per capita än nästan någon annanst... more Sverige är en båtälskande nation. Här finns fler fritids-båtar per capita än nästan någon annanstans i världen. Men vad händer med alla uttjänta plastbåtar? Många blir varken avfall eller kulturarv.
Unruly Heritage. Archaeologies of the Anthropocene, 2024
Naval mines are a family of explosives with the deadly capacity of breaking ship hulls or shaking... more Naval mines are a family of explosives with the deadly capacity of breaking ship hulls or shaking vessels and human bodies to make their fundamental inner structures collapse. The mines have caused a terrible number of fatalities at sea and have accordingly been conceptualised as devilish devices for their exceptionally cruel actions (Hartmann 1979; Koren 2019: 146). Since their triumph during the Great War, huge efforts have been made to trace and destroy the sea mines but a large number of historic explosives have survived into the present. The ‘post-history’ (González-Ruibal 2019: 132) of these unexploded ordnances, lingering under the surface of the sea, has not gained much attention from archaeologists. Yet, their stubborn presence raises several questions. What agency do they possess and what is their legacy in terms of a latent, unruly, and possibly explosive heritage? What influence do they have on humans, on the marine environment, and on heritage matters? This contribution adds an archaeological approach to discussing the prevailing wartime sea mines with a special focus on the Baltic Sea and Swedish east coast.
Broken bodies places and objects. New perspectives of fragmentation in archaeology, 2023
At first, you hardly see anything but the greenish water surrounding you. But as you follow the g... more At first, you hardly see anything but the greenish water surrounding you. But as you follow the gently sloping seabed downward, round ballast stones and timbers can be discerned. And then, at a depth of six metres, more and more pieces of timber come into sight-the remains of the naval ship Rikswasa, which sank after a fire accident in 1623. The Baltic Sea does not provide the best conditions for scuba diving. It is cold and dark, with turbid waters and a species-poor ecosystem. Nonetheless, it does have one great advantage: due to a unique combination of water quality and the absence of wood-consuming organisms, historic shipwrecks are exceptionally well preserved and can stay more or less intact for several hundreds of years. And as the remains are often uncovered, they are easily explored by anyone with a scuba diving licence. When the Rikswasa was launched in 1599, it was one of the largest ships in the Swedish navy, measuring about 45 m in length (Glete 2009:37). The hull was constructed of tonnes of strong oak timbers, fitted together with bolts and framings to form a hull that would resist stormy seas as well as attacks from enemies. Given this, and also the excellent preservation conditions of the brackish water, you would expect large parts of the massive ship to be preserved, with the exception of the parts of the hull that were consumed by the fire. However, on the sea floor, only a fraction of the ship is left, mostly in fragments. What has happened to the wreck? Where have all the missing parts gone? These strange absences reflect a unique story of purposeful fragmentation. In the 1960s, large amounts of ship timber from the Rikswasa were salvaged 17 A MAN-OF-WAR IN PIECES Fragmenting the Rikswasa of 1599 Mirja Arnshav
Vrak. Havets rika historia., 2023
Journal of Contemporary Archaeology Vol.9 No. 2, 2022
This essay presents the results of a survey of the remains of boats used for escaping from occupi... more This essay presents the results of a survey of the remains of boats used for escaping from occupied Baltic countries to Sweden during World War II. It discusses how such remains can be identified and what knowledge and understanding can be gained from their materiality. Whilst these vessels do cast light on a particular escape situation, they also add to a more general understanding of material culture related to forced migration.
Mobilitet och rörelse. Fältarkeologiska perspektiv, 2022
In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toyscrossed the Baltic Sea... more In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toyscrossed the Baltic Sea as their young owners escaped by boat from occupiedEstonia and Latvia to Sweden. The children’s material culture associated withthe Great Escape is forever soaked with memories of these sea journeys. As partof maritime history, they draw our attention to the children’s representation,and call for a broader take on maritime museums’ collecting.Flyktens materialite
The Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, were occupied no less than three times during t... more The Baltic states, Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania, were occupied no less than three times during the Second World War. Faced with a reign of terror, the threat of deportation, and compulsory conscription, over 30,000 people fled over the Baltic Sea to Sweden. On their arrival in Sweden, most escape boats were confiscated by the authorities and in 1945 were returned to the Soviet Union. This study, which began as an attempt to find out about the Baltic escape boats that ended up in Sweden, is inspired by a foreign boat in a small fishing harbour on the island of Gotland. My curiosity was piqued when I caught sight of the boat and heard that it had probably been an escape boat. The purpose of this thesis is to establish which, if any, Baltic escape boats survive in Sweden, in which contexts they remain, and to review their state of preservation, as well as to answer the question of their significance for the memory of the escape. It is an archaeology of the escape and its aftermath, ba...
Tidens landskap. En vänbok till Anders Andrén, 2019
Under havets yta , 2021
Strandvrak i det gotländska fiskeläget Sjaustru. När den lilla träbåten hittades krigsvintern 194... more Strandvrak i det gotländska fiskeläget Sjaustru. När den lilla träbåten hittades krigsvintern 1944 hade andra världskriget pågått i flera år. Under hösten hade flyktingar från Baltikum anlänt så gott som dagligen. Båten låg uppspolad på iskanten och var olycksbådande tom. Evakuering av finska flyktingar hösten 1944. Under krigsåren skeppades tusentals barn mellan Åbo och Stockholm för att undslippa krigets härjningar. Med tiden styrdes evakueringen allt mer om till tågtransporter.
"&am... more ""This paper looks into the mechanisms of an ongoing cultural process within the scope of the heritage management, namely the drive to protect 20th-century shipwrecks. In the 1990s, different stakeholders began to question the fact that wrecks younger than 100 years lacked all sort of legal antiquarian protection. As a response to this, the National Maritime Museums and the Swedish National Heritage Board developed an amendment draft, according to which it would be possible to protect a selection of highly valuable wreck sites under the Heritage Conservation Act. If passed, this amendment will off course have several repercussions on society. However, the focus of this contribution lies on the process itself (i.e. the antiquification of recent wrecks), something which is also worthy of attention. It reflects how heritage is authorized in present day society, and, in a wider context, the issue has bearing on our relationship to ancient remains and its administration throughout history. Drawing from an agency approach and the concept of “the middle ground”, special attention is given to the question of impulses as regards the authorities’ interplay with the public. Also, its response to non-human mediators and the historic setting is being discussed. It is argued that the origin as well as the outcome of the process is due a limited number of persons, whereas additional objectives and interests of different groups have intertwined, affecting the course of events. ""
Journal of Maritime Archaeology, 2014
The issue of marine debris is of a growing concern to present day society. Nonetheless, the occur... more The issue of marine debris is of a growing concern to present day society. Nonetheless, the occurrence of garbage on the sea floor is widely ignored by the marine archaeological body. The main purpose of this article is to discuss archaeological aspects of marine debris of the contemporary past. In particular, the article explores the phenomenon of marine dumping, the active use of raised debris for the sake of education and opinion forming and the human footprint of holiday boating. Drawing from this, it is argued that a maritime garbology—a maritime archaeology that intersects both with the archaeology of the contemporary past and the multidisciplinary field of consumption- and garbage studies—is not only possible but also a promising and relevant field of research.
This paper looks at female presence onboard Swedish naval ships in the 17th century. It is eviden... more This paper looks at female presence onboard Swedish naval ships in the 17th century. It is evident from the material remains as well as from written sources that women did on a regular basis travel on naval ships. These female seafarers came from different social backgrounds and traveled on large as well as small vessels. Some of the women were unmarried, but most of them accompanied a male household member. Based on the written accounts, their presence on board seemed to have been widely accepted by contemporary society. Studies of the two female skeletons found on the Swedish warship Vasa, which sank in 1623 suggest that the presence of these young women were not incidental, but they formed an active part of the ship’s community. The absence of women onboard the warship Kronan which perished in a battle 1676 is understood as evidence that women were seldom on board ships when engaged in battle. However, naval battles were very rare during the whole century. It is argued that by merging the field of naval history with women’s history, a more informed understanding on everyday life in the naval fleet can be obtained.
Facing the Sea. Essays in Swedish Maritime Studies., 2021
In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toys crossed the Baltic Se... more In the Second World War a great number of teddy bears, dolls, and soft toys crossed the Baltic Sea as their young owners escaped by boat from occupied Estonia and Latvia to Sweden. The children's material culture associated with the Great Escape is forever soaked with memories of these sea journeys. As part of maritime history, they draw our attention to the children's representation, and call for a broader take on maritime museums' collecting.
Aktuell marinarkeologi, 2020
Journal of conflict archaeology, 2020
To cite this article: Mirja Arnshav (2020): 'The sea shall have our weapons': small arms and forc... more To cite this article: Mirja Arnshav (2020): 'The sea shall have our weapons': small arms and forced migration across the
Under slutet av andra världskriget anlände mer än 10 000 baltiska flyktingar, mestadels estländar... more Under slutet av andra världskriget anlände mer än 10 000 baltiska flyktingar, mestadels estländare men också hundratals letter, till Gotland. Östergarnslandet på östra Gotland hörde till de områden som mottog flest kontingenter av flyktingar. En av flyktingbåtarna strandade på Östergarnsholm. Spillrorna av båten är fortfarande synlig på flera ställen på ön.
Sverige är en båtälskande nation. Här finns fler fritids-båtar per capita än nästan någon annanst... more Sverige är en båtälskande nation. Här finns fler fritids-båtar per capita än nästan någon annanstans i världen. Men vad händer med alla uttjänta plastbåtar? Många blir varken avfall eller kulturarv.
Föremål på flykt, 2022
Boken är framtagen av Sjöhistoriska museet, som är en del av Statens maritima och transporthistor... more Boken är framtagen av Sjöhistoriska museet, som är en del av Statens maritima och transporthistoriska museer (SMTM), inom projektet Flyktens materialitet. Projektet har finansierats med medel från Riksantikvarieämbetets FoU-anslag och av SMTM. Boken har formgetts och tryckts med stöd från Sjöhistoriska museets vänförening, Sjöhistoriskas Vänner. Nordic Academic Press, Lund www.nordicacademicpress.se Kopiering eller annat mångfaldigande av denna inlaga kräver förlagets särskilda tillstånd.
De små båtarna och den stora flykten. Arkeologi i spåren av andra världskrigets baltiska båtflyktingar., 2020
Bild 1.7. Flera av båtarna var läck och pumpades konstant under överfarten. Sedan människorna omb... more Bild 1.7. Flera av båtarna var läck och pumpades konstant under överfarten. Sedan människorna ombord gått iland vattenfylldes de snabbt. Foto: David Holmert. Ur Bengt Göran Holmerts personarkiv, Landsarkivet i Visby. Bild 1.8. Provisoriskt hopsnickrade hytter var en vanlig syn bland flyktbåtarna. En av de större uppsamlingsplatserna fanns i Slite på Gotland. Foto: Ivar Roksberg. Ur Ivar (Johansson) Roksbergs arkiv, Sjöfartsmuseet Akvariet. Bild 1.9. Beslutet att överlämna de beslagtagna flyktbåtarna till Sovjetunionen medförde ett intensivt arbete med att få båtarna sjödugliga. Foto: Harald Södergren. Ur Harald Södergrens arkiv, Landsarkivet i Visby.
Första världskriget var ett krig av aldrig tidigare skådat slag. Även för en neutral stat som Sve... more Första världskriget var ett krig av aldrig tidigare skådat slag. Även för en neutral stat som Sverige fick kriget långtgående konsekvenser. Från svensk horisont utspelade sig kriget i mångt och mycket till havs, därför har den maritima historien en nyckelroll för förståelsen av det svenska agerandet under kriget.
Hösten 1942 attackerades och sänktes två sovjetiska ubåtar av finska ubåtar i Ålands hav. Ett dry... more Hösten 1942 attackerades och sänktes två sovjetiska ubåtar av finska ubåtar i Ålands hav. Ett drygt halvsekel senare hittades vraken, som visade sig vara de saknade ubåtarna S7 och SC-305. I Stalins ubåtar visas att arkeologin kan bidra till en djupare förståelse av livet och döden ombord på de bägge ubåtarna. Med utgångspunkt från undervattens-fi lm diskuteras hur ubåtarna sett ut, hur man rört sig på skrovet och inte minst vad som hände när de gick under. Därutöver diskuteras också möjligheterna att arbeta med fi lm som källmaterial. Inom svensk arkeologi är det första gången vrak från det nära förfl utna studeras i egenskap av fysiska lämningar. Genom att kombinera samtidsarkeologiska och marinarkeologiska perspektiv och tillvägagångssätt visas på nya möjligheter att forska kring yngre vrak.
"“Recent wrecks". Contemporary Archaeological Approaches to a New Heritage. // Using the cur... more "“Recent wrecks".
Contemporary Archaeological Approaches to a New Heritage. //
Using the current movement for protection of 20th-century wrecks as a case study, the present text discusses how the cultural heritage sector (namely the National Maritime Museums and the Swedish National Heritage Board) deals with the management of modern remains and how new heritage is adopted. Of special interest for the study is the question of what importance the age of a find or a set of remains has when it comes to assessment and status as cultural heritage.
The case study takes its starting point from the development of cultural protection legislation in respect of wrecks. The next issue to be dealt with is how the cultural heritage sector acts as experts and representatives when it comes to adopting and accessioning new heritage. The third chapter of the study enters more deeply into the perspectives of the heritage authorities versus other stakeholders (especially scuba divers) in terms of unprotected 20th-century wrecks. And finally the study looks into how recent wrecks are used as source material and in contexts of narration and what kind of debates and impressions they might give rise to.
The study results in four main conclusions. For one thing, it is found that archaeology of the contemporary past and the heritage sector do not keep in step with each other. Another result is that among scuba divers, the cultural heritage perspective on recent wrecks is not widely adopted. Thirdly, it illustrates that the assessment and establishment of high cultural values are not always the primary incentive for the adoption of new authorized heritage. To conclude, one might also make the argument that age does not necessarily matter – either scientifically or when it comes to experiencing heritage. It might be that the conception of an unbridgeable gulf between modern life and life in the past and the fixation on the distant past is scholarly perspective rather than a spontaneous one.
"
Varför tatuerar man bilden av en gris på just vänster fot? Vad betyder egentligen ett tatuerat a... more Varför tatuerar man bilden av en gris på just vänster fot? Vad
betyder egentligen ett tatuerat ankare? Och hur ser man om en
fullriggare är en äkta sjömanstatuering?
De svenska sjömännens klassiska bildvärld är full av magiska
symboler, skepp och marina föremål. Dessutom myllrar den av
mer eller mindre glömda referenser till populärkulturen, inte
minst den amerikanska.
Svenska sjömanstatueringar tar dig med till de suggestiva hamnkvarteren, de seglande skeppen och en värld som till stora delar är försvunnen.
Norwegian Archaeological Review, 2023
Mette Eriksen Havsteen-Mikkelsen, Skibskost I sejlskibstiden -fortaellinger fra Marstal.
Johan A. Lundin och Fredrik Nilsson: Spritsmuggling på Östersjön. En kulturhistorisk studie av nä... more Johan A. Lundin och Fredrik Nilsson: Spritsmuggling på Östersjön. En kulturhistorisk studie av nätverk i tillblivelse. Makadam förlag, Göteborg & Stockholm 2015. 229 S., ill. ISBN 978-91-7061-181-0.
