Museum unveils new images of WW1 naval wrecks

June 14, 2023 at 3:34 pm

This image of HMS Hampshire was captured by Kari Hyttinen and Chris Rowland, during survey work. Feature image of HMS Vanguard taken by Marjo Tynkkynen.

Divers working with Orkney’s Scapa Flow Museum have captured new breathtaking underwater imagery of two First World War wrecks, both widely regarded as among the UK’s most significant naval losses.

The images were captured during survey work on the cruiser HMS Hampshire, lost off Marwick Head on June 5, 1916 with Lord Kitchener aboard, and HMS Vanguard, which sank in an accidental explosion on July 9, 1917.

Videos, still images and photogrammetric survey data collected will inform, update and enhance digital 3D models of these wreck sites in Scapa Flow Museum — one of five museums shortlisted for the Art Fund Museum of the Year 2023.

They were captured by Huskyan Charters who assembled an expert team for the survey”

The resting place of both these vessels are official war graves — 843 men were lost in the HMS Vanguard disaster and 737 from HMS Hampshire – meaning they are not accessible to members of the public.

Read more about the museum’s work in next week’s The Orcadian.