WA search for 18C Dutch shipwreck to begin

A search for a Dutch East India Company ship believed wrecked off the West Australian coast about 300 years ago is about to begin.

A piloted plane will this week survey waters around the Abrolhos Islands for magnetic signs of the Aagtekerke, which left the Netherlands on its maiden voyage in 1725 and disappeared without a trace the following year.

The survey area includes Half Moon Reef, which is the site of the 1727 wreck of the Dutch East India Company vessel Zeewijk.

Records from Zeewijk survivors note the presence of timbers and artefacts from an older wreck in the surrounding area, which could be the Aagtekerke.

"There is a body of evidence that suggests there is another historic shipwreck in that area that may, or may not, be the Aagtekerke but first we have to find it," Western Australian Museum chief executive Alec Coles said on Wednesday.

"That is not as easy as it sounds given that several previous searches have been unsuccessful.

"Even if a wreck is found, however, we will still need to determine what that ship is."

The survey will extend further than Half Moon Reef as it is understood there could be a wreck in deeper water within the wider Pelsaert Group of islands.

If the Aagtekerke is found, it will be the fifth Dutch East India Company shipwreck discovered along WA's Mid West coast, following the Vergulde Draeck, Batavia, Zeewijk and Zuytdorp.

Mr Coles noted the significance of this year, the 400th anniversary of Dutch explorer Dirk Hartog's arrival at Inscription Point near Shark Bay, which was the first European contact with Australia.

The search is being funded by John Rothwell, the chairman of Perth-based shipbuilding company Austal.