In Tasmania, where it’s winter and storms have been flooding the north of the island, the severe weather has also exposed 19th century shipwrecks usually buried beneath sand and water.

One, the Zephyr, is a well-documented wreck in Bream Creek that re-emerges every so often. The other is a mystery.

This second shipwreck, seen above, appeared on Friendly Beaches, on the island’s east coast. Mike Nash, a historian for Tasmania’s Parks and Wildlife department, believes it may be the Viola, a ship wrecked in 1857.

A sample of wood from the ship’s timbers would help confirm that, ABC News writes, since the Viola came from Canada and its wood would bear evidence of that origin. But with sand quickly piling up around the wreck, its identity will probably remain unconfirmed.

The Zephyr crashed in 1852, in a spot south of the mystery wreck. When conditions are right, its bone-like timbers show themselves.

 

A photo posted by Discover Tasmania (@tasmania) on

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