The museum will soon reopen more than six years after it closed for a huge overhaul
Hull Maritime Museum(Image: Tom Arran Photography)
The date when Hull’s Maritime Museum will reopen to the public has been revealed. The iconic city centre venue is set to welcome back visitors this summer following a significant £20m renovation project.
Hull City Council has confirmed the museum will reopen on Saturday, August 8. When visitors return to the historic venue, they will be met with 50 per cent more objects on display than there were prior to the restoration.
The museum has been closed to visitors since early 2020. It was hoped it would reopen in late 2023 but a number of delays saw this pushed back to this year.
Through immersive galleries, major new displays and internationally significant collections, the museum will tell the story of Hull’s 800-year relationship with the sea, a maritime history that helped shape trade, migration, fishing and whaling across Britain and beyond. The museum is part of the wider Hull Maritime project which seeks to celebrate the city’s rich seafaring past.
The project also includes the Arctic Corsair’s soon-to-be new home at the North End Shipyard. Dredging of the River Hull has now begun to prepare for the vessel’s much-anticipated arrival.
Councillor Mike Ross, leader of Hull City Council, said: “Hull Maritime Museum will be the centrepiece of a new maritime experience that brings Hull’s maritime history to life. It is continuing our long-term cultural regeneration vision for Hull which will significantly increase visitors from across the UK and internationally.
“It will ignite our sense of civic pride in our beautiful and historic city. Visiting Hull Maritime Museum will be an unforgettable experience from August. I am sure we will be welcoming visitors from far and wide to Hull to see its maritime treasures for decades to come.”
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Treasures on display will include:
- A newly-acquired rare scrimshaw tooth linked to Hull whaling ship Truelove, which made 72 Arctic voyages over more than a century
- Decorated sperm whale tooth of the Phoenix of London hunting a sperm whale by renowned American scrimshaw artist Edward Burdett
- One of a famous series of engraved whale teeth by Frederick Myrick depicting the Nantucket whaleship Susan off the coast of Japan
- Hand-painted whale ear bones transformed into surreal human faces
- A whale jawbone plaque depicting an unusual bowhead whale hunt with icebergs in the background and mermaids in the decorated border.
Robin Diaper, Curator of Social and Maritime History, said: “The new museum allows us to tell Hull’s maritime story in a richer and more ambitious way than ever before. Hull is a great maritime city, made greater by its people.
“Our nationally significant collections will reveal not only Hull’s role as one of Britain’s great maritime cities, but also the human stories, creativity and global connections that grew from life at sea.”
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