Hidden Secrets Unearthed: 19th-Century Dutch Shipwreck Discovered Off Australian Shores
Yet, despite the captain’s survival, the exact location of the wreckage of the Koning Willem de Tweede remained a mystery for more than a century. That is, until now, if archaeologists are correct.
The Rediscovery Of The 19th-Century Shipwreck
Australian National Maritime MuseumResearcher Mark Polzer scanning the seabed with a metal detector during the search for the shipwreck.
In 2022, the Koning Willem de Tweede Shipwreck Project commenced, with the aim of searching for, locating, and archaeologically surveying the wreckage. It was a joint effort between the Australian Maritime Museum, the Silentworld Foundation, South Australia’s Department for Environment and Water, and Flinders University.
At the beginning of the project, the team identified a magnetic anomaly consistent with the ship’s dimensions, roughly 460 feet long and 140 feet wide. However, due to poor weather and low visibility in the water, divers weren’t able to see anything until nearly three years later, in March 2025.
At that time, divers discovered iron components of the windlass protruding from the seafloor along with a well-preserved timber plank, suggesting that more of the hull might be intact under the sand.
“We looked at things like the depth of the ship… and we’ve looked at the water depth it’s sitting in, and that all seems to line up really well,” James Hunter of the Australian National Maritime Museum told the Australian Broadcasting Corporation.
Australian National Maritime MuseumComponents of the iron windlass that was ripped from the ship.
Importantly, no other large magnetic signatures were located anywhere nearby. Researchers also identified fragments of 19th-century Chinese earthenware ceramics on an adjacent beach in March 2023, further supporting that this is indeed the location where the Koning Willem de Tweede wrecked.
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