Taucherschacht II, Museum ship in Magdeburg, Germany

Taucherschacht II is a specialized vessel built in 1898 in Berlin, designed and equipped for underwater work operations. The ship featured a vertically lowerable shaft system with pneumatic tools powered by onboard steam engines.

The vessel was built in 1898 at the Wenz & Co shipyard in Berlin to support underwater construction and repair work. It was one of the few ships of its time capable of performing specialized underwater tasks at depths up to 3 meters.

The ship's name refers to its diving shaft, a caisson lowered into the water and kept dry with compressed air, letting workers reach the riverbed at depths of up to three metres. On board, drills and pneumatic hammers were driven by a steam engine until a diesel motor replaced it in 1971.

The ship now rests on a land-based support structure in the Handelshafen, next to the restored chain tug Gustav Zeuner, and was lifted out of the water in 2018. Access was planned from 2020 as part of the developing historic ship museum; the sources give no confirmed opening times, so check locally before travelling.

The diving shaft was a caisson kept dry by compressed air, letting workers labour on the riverbed at depths of up to three metres, for instance preparing blasting charges. On board, drills and pneumatic hammers ran off a steam engine until a diesel motor replaced it in 1971, the conversion done at a Berlin repair yard.