An intricate model ship carved from bones by a French prisoner during the Napoleonic Wars is among a fleet of maritime miniatures making waves at an Armley museum.
Delicately crafted more than 200 years ago from what is believed to be whalebone, the incredible replica recreates in extraordinary detail a magnificent three-masted whaling ship.
It is one of a number of historic model ships currently being assessed and cleaned at Leeds Industrial Museum during a comprehensive audit of the collection.
Complete with an elaborate figurehead, planked deck and carved helm with a steering gear and compass box, the bone model dates from the early 19th century, and is believed to be an example of the type carved by French captives who were held in British prisons and aboard ships.
During the Napoleonic Wars, which took place from 1792 until 1815, French prisoners whiled away the hours of incarceration by painstakingly fashioning such bone and ivory ship models from whatever materials they had at their disposal.
Usually using leftover bone, the prisoners were also known to employ hair, clothing and jewellery. It normally took a prisoner years to complete a single model.
John McGoldrick, Leeds Museums and Galleries’ curator of industrial history, said: “The art of making model ships has existed for centuries and is as old as shipbuilding itself.
“These remarkable models have been made for purposes including testing out new technology, paying tribute to impressive feats of maritime engineering or simply as a popular hobby.
“Each of the model ships in our collection has also been made at a unique and very different moment in history, but what unites them is the ingenuity and attention to detail which has gone into capturing each minute feature.
“That level of dedication and commitment speaks volumes about how impressive these ships were and much they inspired and motivated each model maker to reach such incredible feats of creativity.”
Model ships also collected and stored at the museum include a twin-masted steamer and a steam sailing vessel painted in a diorama alongside a lighthouse and harbour wall.
The models are among an array of vintage machinery stored, conserved and displayed at the museum, which was itself once the world’s largest woollen mill.
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