The oldest diving suit in the world is called "The Old Gentleman of Raahe": It is a diving suit made from cowhide most likely produced in the 18th century. The origins of this artifact are unknown, it is known that it was donated to the Raahe Museum by Captain Johan Leufstadius in 1860 ca. The suit is thought to have been made in Finland as the shoes are modeled on traditional Finnish farmer boots while the suit's "mittens" are similar to typical Finnish forest rangers' gloves. There is an interesting design from 1727 deposited in the Swedish national archives which portrays a diver wearing equipment similar to the Raahe gentleman. The diving suit deposited in the Raahe Museum is made of cowhide with pitch thread stitching and sealed with pitch. The diving suit was waterproofed with a mixture of mutton fat, tar and pitch. The upper part of the suit including the hood were reinforced with wooden strips on the inside. It is thought that the air was pumped for the diver with bellows through wooden tubes joined with flexible leather stockings. The upper part of the helmet probably had a flap valve from which air entered, which came out, when exhausted, through a tube in the back. The operator entered the diving suit through a hole, or bag placed in the front part of the suit and then closed on itself by rolling the leather around the belt and fixing it to the waist. It is thought that this diving suit was used to inspect and repair the keels of ships and therefore avoid having to access the dry dock. The old gentleman of Raahe can and should be considered as a form of transition between diving bells and real diving suits.
 THE KIT in 75mm CONTAINS:
 5-piece model in unpainted resin
 barrel (4 pieces)
 pier section
 THE 54mm KIT CONTAINS:
 5-piece model in unpainted resin
 barrel (4 pieces)
 pier section