Hanseatic chest from 1240 found in Visby

Representatives of the four Hanseatic cities of Visby, Lübeck, Soest and Dortmund met twice a year in Visby to handle the trade on Novgorod. All trade income was kept in Saint Peter's chest. The representatives of the cities had one key each, so it was only when all four met at the same time, that the chest could be opened.

With help of advanced camera technology, the age of the chest has now been confirmed: The oldest dating of the wood goes back to 1209, and the chest was built around 1240, only  fifteen years after the consecration of  the cathedral in 1225.