Cutty Sark Museum: A Showcase of the Greatest Ship of Her Time

Quote of the day: 

Visiting a museum is a matter of going from void to void. -Robert Smithson

 Credit: Getty Images

Back in time shipping goods on high seas was the most important way of trading. Merchant ships would traverse the oceans carrying cargo for delivery in different ports. Speed was a clear advantage for any such ship. Even today with the prevalence of faster ways of moving goods such as by air, ships remain a vital part of trade worldwide.

Cutty Sark, a British Clipper ship was one of such ships. Built in 1869 on the River Clyde, she was one of the fastest and also the last clipper ship to be built during that time. With the opening of the Suez Canal in the same year, it meant that steamships enjoyed shorter routes to China, so Cutty Sark spent just a couple of years in the tea trade before turning to trade in Wool from Australia. 

And after a series of events the ship was sold to a Portuguese company and later exchanged several hands including British owners before it was eventually acquired by the Cutty Sark Preservation Society in 1953. The ship was named after Cutty-Sark, the nickname of the witch Nannie Dee in one of Robert Burn's poems and the figurehead (seen below) is Nannie Dee holding a horse's tail in her left hand. 

Now home in Greenwich, Cutty Sark is remembered as an amazing and historic sailing ship, and the fastest and greatest of her time. It was built in Scotland in 1869 and originally built to carry tea from China to England as fast as possible. The record-breaking ship traveled to every major port in the world during her peak. 

The 19th Century clipper ship has faced wars, storms, neglect and a few fire incidents. While undergoing a restoration in 2007, there was a major fire outbreak but luckily the main parts of the ship had been put in storage and so the damage was not extensive. Conservation work was carried out to raise the Cutty Sark 3 metres above ground, allowing visitors the opportunity to walk directly underneath. 

With the restoration Cutty Sark is not just a museum but with additional services such as a café on board, a studio theatre and a programme of workshops and family events. However admission is not free, and it requires a ticket to enter.

Fun facts

1. Cutty Sark is the world's only surviving extreme clipper ship, and most of the hull fabrics on display today dates back to her original construction.

2. On her first voyage from China, Cutty Sark came back loaded with 1.3 million pounds of tea, as well as other items like wine and spirits.

3. It cost £16,150 to build the Cutty Sark and its overall length is 280 feet, and includes 32 sails and 11 miles of rigging, with a top speed of 17 knots (around 19 miles per hour).

4. After being retired from the wool trade in 1895, it was sold to the Portuguese merchants who renamed her as 'Ferreira'.

5. Cutty Sark was caught in a bad storm during World War One which damaged her masts and in the process of rebuilding the masts were shortened.

6. Cutty Sark is home to the world's biggest collection of figureheads -which are the carved wooden figures that adorn ships’ prows.

More fun facts



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