With a Vampire Squid (from hell), tales of a Kraken with tentacles 2 metres long and a scale-model of Boaty McBoatface, Chatham Historic Dockyard Trust is showcasing an exhibition that has been described as the most technically sophisticated and lavish sea monster-themed showcase ever produced.
Curated by the National Maritime Museum Cornwall with the National Oceanography Centre’s Discovery Collections, Monsters of the Deep breathes life into the supernatural and shows how the fantastical co-exists with science as we try to make sense of what lives down in the depths of the ocean.
Monsters of the Deep encourages the public to explore centuries-old myths and legends of mermaids, tales of deep-sea creatures, explore the fake news stories that proliferate today, and meet the real monsters of the deep housed in tall ‘bubbling’ enigmatic glass tubes containing specimens that will change the way visitors view sea ‘monsters’.
Originally opened at the National Maritime Museum Cornwall in Falmouth (2020) Monsters of the Deep shares creatures from the National Oceanography Centre’s Discovery Collections (first started in 1925) which aim to record life at the darkest depths of the ocean.
Nick Ball collections, galleries and interpretation manager at The Historic Dockyard Chatham, says: “At first glance, some of the specimens we have in our Monsters of the Deep exhibition could be thought of as terrifying – the Sloane’s Viper fish for example with its teeth so large they don’t fit inside its head, or the Giant Sea Spider with a leg span of 75cms! We have these specimens in the exhibition and while they sound terrifying, when visitors get the chance to get up close and personal with the specimens in the exhibition, they learn that there’s nothing scary about these monsters – in fact they are incredible, startling and wondrous.”
Monster of the Deep at The Historic Dockyard Chatham runs until 19 November 2023.
