Permanent Galleries - Navy, Nelson & Nation, Royal Museums Greenwich

Navy, Nelson & Nation explores how the British Navy sculpted the view that the world and the British people had of this nation during the Eighteenth Century. Seen from the viewpoint of ordinary sailors, as well as historical figures such as Nelson & Collingwood, the story of the Navy and its power and reach is depicted through artefacts, paintings and the popular culture of the day.

The new gallery takes the visitor through the experience of life on deck, using artefacts and clothing from the period, including the iconic uniform worn by Lord Nelson during the battle of Trafalgar, and that still bears the damage from the shot that wad to cause his death just as the victory had been claimed by the Navy. Although light levels are kept low for conservation reasons throughout the galleries, the designers were keen that the cramped spaces below decks were contrasted with a feeling of the open air in the above decks section of the displays. A combination of LED and tungsten sources were used to illuminate a wide range of display materials and artefacts, after museum tests showed that no one solution would be best illuminate the range of gallery objects.

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Client
Completion Date

Casson Mann
October 2013