The ship's sarcophagus

摘要

The regimented naval quarters and warehouses forming endless vistas in Portsmouth's 800-year-old Historic Dockyard convey an overwhelming sense of power. Surrounded by a working naval base, the hulls of operational and decommissioned warships forming deep canyons with grids of cannons, its imposing structures yield glimpses of jade seawater and at its north end, rounding the bow of HMS Victory, you see an intriguing black structure like a giant beached mussel. This museum (seeTechnical Study, AJ 31.05.12) opened to the public on Friday (31 May) as the home of Henry VIII's cherished flagship, the Mary Rose, which was built - and in 1545 sank - nearby.