Rare pottery recovered recently from the Eagle shipwreck in Whiting Bay, Arran meets underwater photography and marine-inspired sketches when the Scottish Maritime Museum in Glasgow opens its summer exhibition on Saturday, 7 June.
The Beneath The Waves show includes artefacts found by wreck-diver Graeme Bruce alongside work by photographer, author and marine conservationist Lawson Wood and Ayrshire underwater artist and writer Christina Riley.
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Two ceramic bowls displayed at the show were recovered from the wreck of the 1857 iron steamship Eagle by Oban-based Bruce and his team last July. Their discovery was featured on Divernet.
The rich cargo of crockery highlighted a prized type of bowl made by Glasgow-based Bell’s Pottery, arguably Scotland’s most internationally significant producer of ceramics during the 19th century.
“For me, a shipwreck is a time-capsule hidden from view over time by the sea,” says Bruce. “The privilege of being able to explore and connect with the past is beyond description. Enabling the artefacts from shipwrecks to have a new life connecting people means everything.”
In terms of connections, the Eagle itself was built by Alexander Denny, whose brother William’s test tank for ships, the oldest in the world, now houses the Scottish Maritime Museum’s branch in Dumbarton.
Lawson Wood, from Duns, has been diving since he was 11 and using an underwater camera for much of that time. His 50+ books focus on marine life and shipwrecks, and while his work has taken him all over the world he also played a key role in co-founding the UK’s largest marine-conservation area, Berwickshire Marine Reserve.
Wood marks the opening of Beneath The Waves with a talk entitled “60 Years Underwater” on both the 7 and 8 June. This will cover the early days of marine conservation, and guests will receive a signed print of a sea anemone or seal.
Christina Riley is showing a selection of photographs and pencil drawings from her time as snorkelling-artist-in-residence at the Argyll Hope Spot. The Hope Spots project is part of the global Mission Blue initiative led by oceanographer Dr Sylvia Earle, and highlights areas critical to the health of the ocean.
Riley focuses on the finer points of complex marine ecosystems, highlighting one species at a time, such as seagrass or the elegant eggs of a nudibranch.
“We are thrilled to partner with three such passionate and experienced artists and marine explorers to celebrate our magical and mysterious underwater world,.” says the museum’s exhibitions & events officer Eva Bukowska. “Visitors of all ages will enjoy this immersive journey into the hidden treasures and stories below the waves.”
The exhibition also features artefacts from the museum’s national maritime heritage collection and exhibits on loan from North Ayrshire Heritage Trust. Visitors can also learn about how freediving is said to be advancing understanding of marine archaeology and conservation. The 7 June opening includes a free Dive-In day of activities.
Beneath the Waves runs until 13 September at the Linthouse building on Irvine Harbourside and entry is included in the Scottish Maritime Museum’s £10 standard admission price. Up to three children go free with each adult/concession ticket, and the museum is open daily from 10 to 5. Tickets for Wood’s talks cost £10. Visit the SMM website.
Also on Divernet: EAGLE SHIPWRECK SAVED SCOTTISH TREASURES FOR 166 YEARS, LAWSON WOOD EXPLAINS THE LURE OF SCAPA FLOW, HOW WE FOUND A CRITTER NEW TO CAYMAN, WHY DIVERS SHOULD VISIT THE BASS
