Drought reveals trove of 400-year-old sunken treasure at bottom of Polish river
Thursday, September 20, 2012 | 
Author A trove of sunken treasure from the has been unearthed thanks to a drought that reduced a Polish river to puddles.
More than ten tons of ornate marble statues, fountains and palace pillars appeared on the bed of Poland’s River Vistula as its waters gradually receded to record lows over the summer.
The haul is believed to have been left behind by marauding Swedish invaders who plundered Poland’s rulers in the 17th Century loading the spoils onto barges to transport home.
But experts believe the masonry proved too heavy for their wooden warships which eventually sank under the weight.
The Deluge: Johann Philipp Lemke’s 1656 painting shows Swedish king Charles X Gustav in skirmish with Polish Tartars at the battle of Warsaw. Swedish armies plundered vast quantities of Poland’s riches during their invasion that began in 1655
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