Kasteel Crayestein, Medieval fortress ruins in Sliedrecht, Netherlands
Kasteel Crayestein is a medieval fortress whose stone foundations now rest submerged beneath the Merwede River. Built around 1250 as a rectangular stone structure, it once stood at the water's edge near Sliedrecht.
The fortress was built in the High Middle Ages and remained visible in records through the 1500s before gradually disappearing beneath the water. By the end of the 1500s it had sunk completely below the surface.
The castle was a hunting lodge where nobles gathered for falconry in the surrounding marshlands. This practice connected the local lords to the land and shaped how they spent their time in the region.
The site is now buried under the river and the surrounding port area, though it is marked by modern landmarks nearby. You can view the location from the waterside or from paths along Baanhoekweg where interpretation markers exist.
During excavations in the 1800s, workers uncovered a carved stone lion from the ruins that now sits in the Rijksmuseum in Amsterdam. This sculpture is one of the few surviving artworks that originally stood at the fortress.
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