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Restored gun from deck of HMS Hampshire returns to Scapa Flow Museum

Date: 07 February 2022

HMS Hampshire restored gun

A newly restored naval gun from the ill-fated HMS Hampshire will stand sentry as a sombre reminder of the perils of war when it is welcomed back to Scapa Flow Museum as part of a £4.4m redevelopment underway.

The gun, now 106 years old, was transported from the island of Hoy on Orkney to Alloa, in the central lowlands of Scotland, for conservation late last year, after decades withstanding the inhospitable sea air beside Scapa Flow in Orkney - the Royal Navy’s key strategic shelter for its fleet during the World Wars.

After a painstaking restoration by JPS Restoration and Property Services, lasting more than three weeks, the gun will take up residence within the new Museum foyer – a climate-controlled future which will help ensure it remains a powerful feature of the Museum for the next 100 years.

Scapa Flow Museum is run by Orkney Islands Council – its redevelopment, comprising an extension to the Museum and refurbishment of the historic pumphouse, is supported by Orkney Islands Council, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Historic Environment Scotland, the Orkney LEADER 2014-2020 programme, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, NatureScot and Museums Galleries Scotland.

The newly restores gun is a Vickers 3 Pounder Mk II Quick-Firing deck gun. It was recovered from the wreck of HMS Hampshire, which struck a German mine off Marwick Head in heavy weather on the evening of June 5, 1916, and sank within 15 minutes. All but 12 men of over 650 on board perished, including Lord Kitchener – the then UK Secretary of State for War - who was travelling with a delegation to Russia for strategic talks.

The gun was previously on display in the Museum’s Pumphouse, but had suffered from the poor environmental conditions within the building before the current renovation works. Restoration to protect it for future generations became a priority for the Council’s Museums team in recent years.

Nick Hewitt is Team Leader for Culture at Orkney Islands Council – he oversees cultural offerings maintained by the Council on behalf of the community: “We’re all incredibly excited by the arrival home to Orkney of this gun. It’s been a long process for the team to secure the funds for her restoration, something we’re keenly aware was also of great importance to the local community and to enthusiasts further afield.

“It’ll be the first artefact to enter the new Museum – its placement here in the foyer marks the very first moment of building the exhibition, after closing the Museum in 2019 for the redevelopment construction.

“And although there are many more weeks of work yet to build cabinets and create mounts and backdrops before we even start bringing other artefacts back in, it seems a highly appropriate and poignant object with which to mark the start of that process, of moving from the construction phase to one of bringing a museum space to life with artefacts and the stories they tell.”

Chair of the Council’s Education, Leisure and Housing Committee, Councillor Gwenda Shearer, said: “What better way to ignite the process of bringing the Museum back to life than the renewal and return of this gun – it holds so many stories and I look forward to seeing many more much-loved artefacts being installed in coming months.”

Thanks goes to local firm Heddle Construction Ltd who installed the gun into the foyer for their expert handling and for showing such care during the heavy lifting.

JPS Restoration and Property Services were tasked with the conservation work. Jason Struthers, owner, says the gun was in good shape considering its age and the environmental impacts it had been subjected too: “It’s still a remarkably robust structure which was built to last however corrosion had taken hold to concealed and external areas.

“One of the main challenges was that there is very little information available about how this particular model gun was put together. We have discovered the gun has been modified from its original assembly style and mounted on a different stand from possibly another ship or gun.

“So there was a bit of time spent walking around it to figure that out – because our aim is to dissect it as much as possible and get into all the crevices and get rid of corrosion which can cause damage.

“For example, there were some fractures in some of the bronze, which is ¾” thick in places –  it is not a direct structural point or of any concern, but it just highlights the power of corrosion heave. That’s why we do everything we can to safely take it out without causing irreversible damage.

“Disassembly is a slow process, and you have to carefully document it as you go -  but once it’s all apart the most labour intensive part is then getting rid of heavy corrosion. The only way to do it effectively is by hand carefully with a needle gun and hand tools. It’s messy, noisy, and seems never-ending work – but it’s essential as wherever possible you must get it all out, right back to shiny metal.

“Then the individual components are repainted with a zinc phosphate primer, micacious iron oxide and then two top coats which added protection and aesthetics – in this case it was a black finish, apart from the bronze parts which were burnished and protected with renaissance wax.

“Then all the newly painted parts are reassembled, with generous amounts of putty to prevent voids where corrosion could be encouraged.

“Despite best efforts there is always the possibility of concealed corrosion within areas that we are unable to dismantle without causing irreversible damage - but in its new indoor climate-controlled home any concealed corrosion will be kept at bay and this gun will stand the test of time for years now.”

The Scapa Flow Museum is run by Orkney Islands Council and charts Orkney’s military involvement in the First and Second World Wars and provides a safe home for a major collection of wartime artefacts, many of national and international importance.

It is currently undergoing a refurbishment project valued at of £4.4 million, comprising an extension to the Museum and refurbishment of the historicpumphouse, supported by Orkney Islands Council, the National Lottery Heritage Fund, Historic Environment Scotland, the Orkney LEADER 2014-2020 programme, Highlands and Islands Enterprise, Museums Galleries Scotland and the Scottish Government’s European Regional Development Fund programme, managed by NatureScot through the Natural & Cultural Heritage Fund. (The Natural & Cultural Heritage Fund is part of the Scottish Government’s European Regional Development Fund programme, which finishes in 2023. NatureScot is also managing another element of the programme – the Green Infrastructure Fund. The Scottish Government is the Managing Authority for the European Regional Development Fund and the European Structural Funds 2014-20 Programme. For further information visit the Scottish Government website or follow @scotgovESIF.)

When complete, the Museum will open all-year-round for the first time in many years, encouraging more people to visit Hoy and boosting tourism throughout the island.

The Museum is expected to open in summer 2022.

  • Summary:

    The process of rebuilding the Scapa Flow Museum’s exhibitions has started off with a bang - with the homecoming of a newly restored gun from the deck of HMS Hampshire.

  • Category:
    • Arts, Museums and Heritage
    • Scapa Flow Museum
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