Zeewijk
Marker: recorded wreck position (Date not recorded).
Key facts
| Name | Zeewijk | Wikidata label |
|---|---|---|
| Ship type | East Indiaman | Wikidata P31 instance of |
| Nationality / flag | Kingdom of the Netherlands, Australia | Wikidata P8047 country of registry |
| Sea / ocean | INDIAN OCEAN | Natural Earth marine areas (public domain), point-in-polygon |
| Nearest coast | Australia | Natural Earth (public domain); approx. 79 km from land |
| Position | -28.8838, 113.8134 | Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0) |
About the wreck
The Zeewijk (or Zeewyk) was an 18th-century East Indiaman of the Dutch East India Company (Dutch: Vereenigde Oostindische Compagnie, commonly abbreviated to VOC) that was shipwrecked at the Houtman Abrolhos, off the coast of Western Australia, on 9 June 1727. The survivors built a second ship, the Sloepie, enabling 82 out of the initial crew of 208 to reach their initial destination of Batavia on 30 April 1728. Since the 19th century many objects have been found near the wreck site, which are now in the Western Australian Museum. The shipwreck itself was found in 1968 by divers.
Diving & visiting
In 1840 HMS Beagle found relics at the camp site, including a VOC cannon and two coins dated 1707 and 1720 which helped to confirm that the site belonged to the Zeewijk. They named the Zeewyk Channel after the wreck.
In the 1880s and 1890s a large amount of material was recovered during guano mining. Items including bottles, coins, wine glasses, jars, pots, spoons, knives, musket and cannonballs, tobacco and pipes were found.
Location
- Recorded position: -28.8838, 113.8134 (Wikidata P625 coordinate location (CC0); may be approximate)
- Sea / ocean: INDIAN OCEAN
- Nearest coast: Australia
Wreck positions on this site are for interest only and are not for navigation. Many wrecks are war graves or legally protected: never disturb human remains or remove artefacts, and check local law before diving.
Text adapted from the Wikipedia article Zeewijk (revision 1361730587), licensed under CC BY-SA 4.0. Changes: excerpted from the article lead section and section(s) “Discovery and subsequent excavation”; condensed by selecting paragraphs; citations and formatting removed. No text added. This excerpt is available under the same licence.
Wreck facts from Wikidata (CC0).
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Browse more: Oceania wrecks · wrecks off Australia · INDIAN OCEAN