Birketts sponsors historic Gloucester Exhibition
8 February 2023
Birketts is proud to sponsor Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery’s historic exhibition of the Gloucester, a 17th Century ship, which sank off the Norfolk coast carrying royalty and the personal possessions of passengers and crew on what was to be its final voyage in 1682.
Opening on 25 February 2023, the exhibition is the culmination of decades of work by brothers Julian and Lincoln Barnwell and their friend, James Little, who painstakingly searched for over four years, travelling 5,000 nautical miles to and from the Great Yarmouth coast, for the historic shipwreck. The discovery in 2012 of the ship’s bell was the formal proof they needed that what they had found was the Gloucester, a British warship which historically sank while carrying the future King of England and Scotland, James Stuart. Although James survived to be crowned James II in 1685, the wreck caused great human loss and was of huge political importance.
The keen divers’ incredible discovery was initially kept under wrapsbecause the wreck lies in international waters, is at risk from human impact and dynamic environmental factors. The team have been working very closely with the MoD to secure the heritage future of the Gloucester (1682) and the connected artefacts.
Supported by researchers at The University of East Anglia, the exhibition will bring to life artefacts including the personal belongings of those on board, navigational equipment, wine bottles and various other objects which all tell a story and give an insight into life over 300 years ago. Chris Coupland, Partner and Head of the Agriculture and Estates Team at Birketts said: “Birketts is delighted to sponsor such an important and fascinating exhibition. The significance of this historical find, off the shores of our home on the East Anglian coast and the two stories that accompany it, both historical and recent, are quite incredible. It is wonderful to be a part of this moment in British and East Anglian history”.
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Chris Coupland
