Gribshunden (or Griffen), sunk in 1495, is possibly the best preserved 15th century warship in the world. Probably built in the Netherlands with timber from France, used by the Danish king on travels to England, Norway and Sweden, it is truly an international shipwreck. Since it is carvel built, it can also give important clues to the ship building techniques used by the great explorers, Columbus and Vasco da Gama.

A Gribshunden seminar took place in Ronneby, Sweden in November 2015. The aim of the seminar was to present current stage of investigation of the shipwreck. Blekinge museum and the county administrative board of Blekinge invited researchers, conservators and archaeologists from different parts of Europe to share their research and their view on Gribshunden.

Early contact between the Netherlands and the realms of the danish kings.
The contact between the Netherlands and Denmark did not cease in the centuries after the Vikingeage.
From Jutland the city of Ribe had a strong trade link to the Netherlands, where especially the oxentrade was important. In Norway the merchants from the Netherlands bought dried cod, stockfish and in the early 15. Century timber .
It was, however, on the yearly Skanør market, that the contact was strongest. Here merchants from all over Northern Europe came for the main commodity: pickled herring.
The strong Hansemerchants controlled the market, as they were the suppliers of the main ingredients for pickled herring: Salt.
Merchants from the Netherlands started to sail to the west coast of France, where cheap and pure seasalt could be had, and they brought this commodity to the Skanør market, and hereby breeched the Hanse salt monopoly. Later on, they started to sail directly to their exports markets in the Baltic and traded directly with especially the east Baltic towns of Riga and Dantzig, who had a surplus of grain. The Netherland ships could offer cheap freigtrates and thereby competing with the Hanseships.
The Hanse city of Lübeck had much to lose to the newcomers, so war broke out between this town and the itowns of the Netherlands.
In 1422, the Danish king Erik of Pommern issued a set of laws that should regulate the trade in the cities of his Realms. Until then, the hansemerchants had totally dominated every aspect of trade and they had widespread privilegees. The new laws confined foreigners only to do bulktrade.
Soon war broke out between the Hanse and the Danish king, but in 1441 peace was settled and here the Hanse had to accept the conditions and that the Dutch were allowed to sail and trade in the Baltics.

In Sweden, the aristocracy for a long time had been dissatisfied withthe Danish kings and thus rebelled against king Erik of Pommern in 1434. In the next 4 decades different stages of war existed between the Danish king and the Swedish nobility. The hanse cities supported Sweden, because iron and copper could be had in Sweden, and they therefore placed themselves as the enemies of the Danish kings, who had issued and order of embargo on trade with Sweden.
King John of Denmark and Norway wanted to back this embargo with his own navy and he was also very favorable towards the Netherlands, who themselves saw the Hanse as their main trade opponent.
Thus a letter exists from 1488, that specifically mentions, that he had Dutch shipbuilders, who helped in the building af carvelships.
The Dutch trade in the Baltic accelerated during the 15. Century and by 1500 about a thousand Dutch ships entered the Sound every year, double as much as the Baltic Hansefleet.