Two great Asian cities are set to welcome maritime history for local citizens to lap up.
Tomorrow sees the launch of Mitsui OSK Lines’s Funeshiru Museum in Osaka, featuring hands-on displays to see, touch, and play with the world of ships.
The museum features the world’s first 310-degree LED screen navigation simulator for the general public, a 30 m wide immersive theatre (pictured above) showing various giant vessels, and interactive art walls, where visitors’ drawings of ships come to life. The museum is adjacent to the MOL Sunflower ferry terminal.
“Through the museum’s hands-on and interactive exhibits, MOL seeks to raise awareness among as many people as possible about the scale of shipping, the role of ships in daily life, the work involved in shipping, and the future of the industry, thereby creating MOL fans, promoting maritime education, and building consciousness of the need for environmental protection,” the Japanese shipping line said in a release.
Meanwhile, in Hong Kong, the local maritime museum has today announced the completion of the Hong Kong Maritime Museum Jockey Club Anchor Plaza (pictured below). Funded by the Hong Kong Jockey Club Charities Trust, the plaza is focused around the 36 tonne, 7 m high anchor of the Seawise Giant, the largest cargo vessel ever built. It also features a walkthrough pavilion with immersive art tech displays and interactive screens, providing a brand-new interactive public learning space that showcases Hong Kong’s rich maritime cultural heritage.
The anchor, which originally had 20 shackles of chain, was once installed on the 657,019 dwt Seawise Giant. The ship, once owned by Hong Kong shipping magnate C.Y. Tung, was dismantled on the beaches of Gujarat, India, in 2010 after 35 years of service.
Richard Hext, chairman of the Hong Kong Maritime Museum, said: “We are eagerly looking forward to the opening day, when visitors from Hong Kong and around the world can come and appreciate Hong Kong’s treasured maritime heritage.”
