Mary Rose museum building to start in the autumn
The Mary Rose was built in Portsmouth in 1509-1510 and was one of the most powerful warships afloat in the Tudor era. She sank in the Solent on 19 July 1545, but was rediscovered and finally raised in 1982. She now lies in a dry dock in Portsmouth’s Historic Dockyard, very close to Nelson’s flagship, HMS Victory. There is also a museum about the ship, but this is half a mile away near the dockyard gates.
Now planning permission for a new GBP 35 million building has been granted, and this building will be built around the dock containing the ship. Galleries shaped like the ship’s missing port side will be built and will hold items from the wreck displayed in their original context. Galleries at either end of the ship will contain other artefacts and exhibits. At the moment only 6% of the 19,000 artefacts from the ship are displayed, so a lot of items will be displayed for the first time.
Building work is expected to start in the autumn.
