National Maritime Museum

Nelson's Ship in a Bottle

Yinka Shonibare MBE’s Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle is a scaled-down replica of Nelson’s flagship HMS Victory, on which he died at the Battle of Trafalgar. It has 80 cannon and 37 richly-patterned sails inspired by Indonesian batik.

Shonibare was nominated for the Turner Prize in 2004, the same year in which he was awarded an MBE. Nelson’s Ship in a Bottle was commissioned by the Greater London Authority for the Fourth Plinth project and was unveiled in Trafalgar Square in May 2010. It now has a permanent new home outside the National Maritime Museum's Sammy Ofer Wing.

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