Near perfect, that is, for a wooden ship that’s been lying on the floor of the Baltic Sea for several hundred years.

The shipwreck wasn’t purposely found but discovered by a TV crew working on an underwater documentary series. The crew works for Swedish public broadcaster SVT.

What’s unusual about the find is the exceptional condition the ship has maintained, making it perhaps the best preserved ship ever seen from that timeframe.

A spokesperson for SVT indicated the ship is about 410 feet (125 meters) below the sea’s surface and is 65 feet (20 meters) long by 22 feet (7 meters) wide.

The shipwreck hasn’t been positively identified, but it’s believed to have been a Dutch trading vessel.

Several news organizations have reported small variations of this story. First, stop by BBC News and visit their article, Baltic yields ‘perfect’ shipwreck. It has two excellent photos that provide a sense of the ship and its preserved condition.

Two other organization who have reported the story are:

• International Herald Tribune via Swedish TV team finds 17th century shipwreck
• The Independent via Baltic yields ‘perfect’ wreck of the 17th-centrury sailing ship