Having outside experts use our collection to research their own projects is a great thing because even though it’s sometimes inconvenient and frequently time consuming it ALWAYS yields some new information about an object or image in our collection. This was especially the case in November when two researchers, Kevin Foster and Emir Yener, showed up to research Civil War era blockade runners and nineteenth century warships.

Unpack the ancient stories and rich symbolism weaved into a Chinese silk hand-embroidered tapestry. Crafted with gold-laced thread, this woven textile is a stunning display of figures, flowers, animals, and other symbols representing various Chinese symbolism and mythological themes. 

Learn the amazing story of the British Royal Navy’s fortification and occupation of Diamond Rock, a small island off the coast of Martinique, during the Napoleonic War.

Most everyone knows Hal Holbrook as a quintessential actor of television, movies, and the stage. Most everyone knows Hal Holbrook as a quintessential actor of television, movies, and the stage.

For most indigenous groups around the world, there are gender-based roles and skills, and these skills are taught by their elders in order to pass on their traditions from generation to generation.

The Battle of Drewry’s Bluff was a dramatic Confederate victory. Richmond was under immediate threat of being captured or at least shelled and destroyed by the Union flotilla, but the cannoneers at Drewry’s Bluff prevented the capital from capture.

The Mariners’ Museum is home to a duo of watercolors documenting events occurring during the July 1797 attack on Santa Cruz de Tenerife. The artist, Captain William Henry Webley, participated in the action, making his paintings the only eyewitness views of the event known to exist. The attack was led by one of the most renowned naval leaders, Britain’s Vice Admiral Horatio Lord Nelson — and it was an utter failure. On the 226th anniversary of the attack, we piece together the artwork and letters from Webley and Lieutenant William Hoste to get a better idea of what happened during the catastrophic raid.