The ship was built in 1926 by the Norwegian shipyard Nylands Verksted in Oslo and was named as Pol II.

The whaler measured at 240 gross register tons (GRT), had a steam engine with an output of 135 horsepower (101 kW).

[1] The ship was used as a whaler in the northern and southern polar seas until 1940, then went info military service as a minesweeper for the Royal Navy during World War II and was listed as a ship in Nortraship's register.

[2][1] The ship's 100th-year anniversary is planned to take place in the harbour of Larvik in Norway on July 24–26 in 2026.

[8] The sister ship Stedemaeght was built the same year as Artemis originally named Pol IV and was also converted to a sailship in 1991 offering charter from Lelystad, the Netherlands.