Collections

Under the Antiquities Act, artifacts recovered during maritime archaeological investigations that are considered state property are catalogued into the collections of the Finnish Maritime Museum. Stray finds redeemed under the Antiquities Act are also incorporated into the museum’s collections. The resulting Special Collection of Maritime Archaeology accounts for roughly half of the total number of objects in the Finnish Maritime Museum’s artifact collections (slightly over 20,000 items in total).

The conservation of maritime archaeological material takes place at the waterlogged materials conservation laboratory located in the collection and conservation center of the Finnish Heritage Agency, where one full-time researcher-conservator specializing in these materials is employed. After conservation, the objects are transported to the Finnish Maritime Museum at the Maritime Centre Vellamo in Kotka, where each object is catalogued, photographed, and transferred to climate-controlled storage facilities appropriate to its material composition. At the same time, every object is assigned its own barcode, allowing its current location and handling history to remain continuously accessible and up to date.

The maritime archaeological collection distinguishes the Finnish Maritime Museum from all other museums in Finland and also includes internationally unique collections of material. The artifacts are displayed in exhibitions organized by the National Museum of Finland and the Maritime Museum itself, as well as on loan in exhibitions at other museums.