• The collection of items from the North boats include fittings such as this wash stand from a passenger cabin.
  • Making and repairing sails was an ongoing task in the 19th century. Our collection includes many tools that Shetlanders used.
  • We have many examples of crafts that seamen made in their spare time, including ships in bottles and even ships in lightbulbs!

Maritime

Britain’s merchant fleet was once the world’s largest, and for 150 years it was vital to Shetland’s economy because seamen supported their families with wages from the sea. The museum collection encompasses islanders’ worldwide voyaging, with tools of their trade and souvenirs taken home.

Our collection is strongest from the classic era of sailing ships in the 19th century, that were both romantic and dangerous. Most objects are mariners’ own tools, such as sailmaking equipment. Many Shetlanders became ship masters and the museum has sextants, telescopes and charts that they used daily. One of the largest sectors around 1820-90 was the Arctic whaling, and we have harpoons and other apparatus for whaling and sealing. 
 
Long sea passages allowed men time to craft items by carving and ropework, and there are several examples in the collection. Often, seamen obtained souvenirs from people in foreign lands; we have things taken back from the Arctic, the Orient and South America.

Services in Shetland have allowed safe navigation, and saved lives if shipwreck occurred. We have machinery from lighthouses and coastguard apparatus used to hoist people from ship to shore. There is diverse debris found on beaches after wrecks, like nameboards, figureheads, lifebelts and furniture.