STOCKHOLM, Sweden: Divers searching the wreck of an 17th-century Swedish warship on the bed of the Baltic say they have found de Brie.
Sifting through the ancient timbers of the Kronan, a ship that sank in 1676 off the Swedish coast, they found not diamonds as they had hoped... but a cheese.
Inside a watertight pot was a semi-firm 340-year-old “dairy product” smelling of yeast and Roquefort cheese, expedition leader Lars Einarsson told AFP on Thursday.
“Unlike the others, I find its smell is quite pleasant,” he said. “It smells of life.”
The unusual find is being sent to the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences for tests.
The Kronan (Crown) sank off the island of Oeland, southeastern Sweden on June 1, 1676 in a battle with a Danish-Dutch fleet.
Squabbling officers and too much sail caused the ship to capsize and then explode. Only about 40 of the 800 crew survived.
The wreck was found in 1980 by Anders Franzen, an amateur naval archaeologist who 24 years earlier discovered the warship Vasa, which sank in 1628 in Stockholm port on its maiden voyage.
The Vasa’s timbers were brought to the surface — the ship, housed in a maritime museum in Stockholm, is now one of Sweden’s star attractions.
But in the Kronan’s case, the blast was so powerful that pieces of the ship were scattered over a wide area of seabed. Fishing nets, minesweeping and the forces of the sea have added to the dispersal.
Around 80 percent of the estimated site has been explored, revealing a trove of treasure and historical artefacts.
Around 30,000 items have been brought to the surface so far, including bronze cannon, chests, dishes, navigational instruments and a German-made trumpet, as well as diamonds and gold coins.
Divers have also found flour, animal bones, liquor and wine — items that are a potential bonanza for historians eager for insights into how food was made centuries ago.
The cheese survived thanks to the chill and low salinity of the Baltic and the fact that it lay under a thick layer of sediment, which protected the pot from corrosion.
In 2010, divers recovered 145 bottles of vintage Champagne from the wreck of a ship that sank off the Finnish archipelago of Aland between 1825 and 1830.
17th-century cheese found in Baltic wreck
17th-century cheese found in Baltic wreck
Christmas Eve winner in Arkansas lands a $1.817 billion Powerball lottery jackpot
- The winning numbers were 04, 25, 31, 52 and 59, with the Powerball number being 19
- The last time someone won a Powerball jackpot on Christmas Eve was in 2011, Powerball said
ARKANSAS, USA: A Powerball ticket purchased at a gas station outside Little Rock, Arkansas, won a $1.817 billion jackpot in Wednesday’s Christmas Eve drawing, ending the lottery game’s three-month stretch without a top-prize winner.
The winning numbers were 04, 25, 31, 52 and 59, with the Powerball number being 19. The winning ticket was sold at a Murphy USA in Cabot, lottery officials in Arkansas said Thursday. No one answered the phone Thursday at the location, which was closed for Christmas. The community of roughly 27,000 people is 26 miles (42 kilometers) northeast of Little Rock.
Final ticket sales pushed the jackpot higher than previous expected, making it the second-largest in US history and the largest Powerball prize of 2025, according to www.powerball.com. The jackpot had a lump sum cash payment option of $834.9 million.
“Congratulations to the newest Powerball jackpot winner! This is truly an extraordinary, life-changing prize,” Matt Strawn, Powerball Product Group Chair and Iowa Lottery CEO, was quoted as saying by the website. “We also want to thank all the players who joined in this jackpot streak — every ticket purchased helps support public programs and services across the country.”
The prize followed 46 consecutive drawings in which no one matched all six numbers.
The last drawing with a jackpot winner was Sept. 6, when players in Missouri and Texas won $1.787 billion.
Organizers said it is the second time the Powerball jackpot has been won by a ticket sold in Arkansas. It first happened in 2010.
The last time someone won a Powerball jackpot on Christmas Eve was in 2011, Powerball said. The company added that the sweepstakes also has been won on Christmas Day four times, most recently in 2013.
Powerball’s odds of 1 in 292.2 million are designed to generate big jackpots, with prizes growing as they roll over when no one wins. Lottery officials note that the odds are far better for the game’s many smaller prizes.
“With the prize so high, I just bought one kind of impulsively. Why not?” Indianapolis glass artist Chris Winters said Wednesday.
Tickets cost $2, and the game is offered in 45 states plus Washington, D.C., Puerto Rico and the US Virgin Islands.
