CURIOS FROM THE SEA

Bay of Plenty Times, Volume LXVI, Issue 12285, 24 February 1938, Page 4

CURIOS FROM THE SEA

DISPLAY OF MARITIME RELICS

A show which is attracting much interest not only among the schoolboys for whom it was primarily arranged but also among the general public, is the Sea Roamers’ Exhibition in Selfridge’s Palm Court, where a comprehensive collection of maritime relics and curios is on display.

Pride of place is given to “Valhalla,” the Hall of the Dead, which is the name given to one of the finest maritime collections in the world by its owner, Mr Silver-Cumbers, better known by the nom de mer, Captain John Silver. According to Captain Silver, the “star” of his collection is a fragment of the lifeline of the Titanic, which was given by a member of the crew to Captain Holland later to Captain Silver. Of very special interest, however, is" the figurehead of the Golden Cherubs, carved by the master carver, Grinling Gibbons, in 1662. This is believed to be the oldest merchant ship figurehead in the world.

Other fine figureheads in the collection are “The Bride,” so named in 1863 in honour of the wedding of Edward VII. to Alexandra, and “Beda,” a magnificent figure taken from the wreck of the barque Bertha Marion, later called Beda.

Many beautiful models are included in the collection, and Captain Silver has made a specialty of mounting them on glass resembling sea water, with a real sea bed some three inches below. Thus, his model of the Gravesend rests in glass above a sea bed made of sand, shells and weed collected by Captain Silver on the Goodwin Sands. Watch From the Bounty.

Many other fascinating treasures of the sea arc to be found in the exhibition. A curio of special value is the watch belonging to William Peckover, a gunner on H.M.S. Bounty at the time of the mutiny. It travelled with its owner in the open boat across the Pacific and was his only means of telling the time until June 2, 1788, when, as related in his log, it stopped. This watch, together with a nail and a fragment of the rudder, also on display, are believed to be the only relics of the Bounty which have come back to England. One of the original bullion cases found among the wreckage of the Spanish Armada, blue prints from the original plans of H.M.S. Victory, coins and tokens dating back 2000 years and recently found during excavations near London bridge, are also to be seen. Tents, clothing, and equipment used by Scott and other famous explorers of the Arctic and Antarctic can be examined, and a genuine eskimo kayak may be compared with a kayak (or canoe) built by the Thames Sea Scouts for their training. Other exhibits include diving apparatus and working models, a portrait gallery, ancient shipping “house” flags, and models and equipment of passenger liners past and present. Creditor the preparation and excellent layout of the exhibition goes to Mr H. Chatham.