Imperial Russian artillery shells found at sea bottom near central Helsinki
Munitions believed to date back to 1917
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Dredging work about 30 metres from Helsinki's North Shore revealed brought 14 old artillery shells to the surface on Wednesday.
Markings on the shells suggest that they were part of the Baltic Fleet of Tsarist Russia.
the shells, which were packed in rusty metallic boxes, were put on a barge for transport to the nearby Santahamina military base for destruction.
"The shells were in good shape and they were shining. They do not constitute an immediate danger to the environment, but we have to be careful in handling them", says Major Mika Tyry, who oversaw the operation.
Major Tyry believes that the shells were probably sunk in connection with the events of 1917.
In that year, some of the sailorsof Russia's Baltic Fleet mutinied, as discipline weakened among imperial forces, undermined by revolutionary activities and the First World War.
At a Russian Naval base in Helsinki, several officers were killed, and the body of at least one of them was pushed into a hole in the ice off Katajanokka.
There had also been a rebellion on the fortress island of Viapori - now Suomenlinna - in 1905. However, some of the shells bear markings indicating that they were manufactured in 1913.
Helsingin Sanomat
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| 7.12.2007 - TODAY |
 Imperial Russian artillery shells found at sea bottom near central Helsinki |
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