Ship's figurehead, made in Scotland, c.1837
The Sirius was a Transatlantic paddle steamer. In 1838 it became the first ship to complete an east-west Atlantic crossing under steam power. The Sirius' crossing took 19 days. It was only four hours ahead of the Great Western steamer designed by the famous engineer, Isambard Kingdom Brunel. This would have greatly annoyed Brunel. His Great Western covered the journey four days quicker, but set out too late to catch the Sirius. The Sirius was shipwrecked in 1847, on a journey from Glasgow to Cork. It was shipwrecked off Ballycotton Head near Dublin, with 19 crew and passengers lost. In 1904, the wreckage was salvaged by divers. This figurehead was one of the items saved. It was donated to Hull Museums by Alderman Thompson.
