„To Board!” exhibition (28.11.2012 – 29.09.2013) was presented in the Granaries on Ołowianka Island – the seat of the Polish Maritime Museum in Gdańsk. en.cmm.pl.

On the 27th of November 2012, one day before the 385th anniversary of the Battle of Oliwa, the Polish Maritime Museum (CMM) in Gdańsk opened new and extraordinary exhibition „To Board!”. Thanks to this temporary exhibition presented in the Granaries on Ołowianka Island the visitors have a chance to know one of the basic and oldest military tactics at sea – boarding.

The exhibition is arranged so that the visitors can learn the specific aspects of war at sea on the example of events which occurred throughout the centuries – from the Antiquity till today. And this is why, „To Board!” exhibition presents the following battles at sea: the Battle of Salamis (28.09.480 B.C.), the Battle of Vistula Lagoon (15.09.1463), and the Battle of Oliwa (28.11.1627). The exhibition also presents the activities of the Somali pirates in the Indian Ocean within the so-called ‚Horn of Africa’.

The most important part of the exhibition refers to the reconstructed fragment of the 17th century warship gun deck with three cannons – the visitors have a chance not only to learn the conditions of life and work on the historical warship but also to prepare the cannon to fire, aim at the enemy warship and … fire the replica of the 17th century cannon.

„To Board!” exhibition includes valuable exhibits of cold steel and firearms from the 15th-20th centuries borrowed by the Polish Maritime Museum (CMM) from the collections of the National Museum in Kraków, the Polish Army Museum in Warsaw and the Malbork Castle Museum. The exhibition also presents the weaponry from the CMM collection related to the wreck of the Swedish warship “Solen” which sank after the explosion in gunpowder chamber during the Battle of Oliwa.

Moreover, the exhibits include the copies of arms (e.g. elements of the hoplite ancient weaponry and the arms of the medieval knight) which the visitors are able not only to see from a close distance but also to touch and try on.

The exhibition „To Board!” is adjusted to the disabled who find there tactile models illustrating the status before and after the battle, and information materials printed in Braille. The accompanying events involve workshops and educational activities for children and teenagers (e.g. fencing lessons), and also a series of lectures for adults related to the topic of the exhibition.

The project „To Board!” is co-financed by the Minister of Culture and National Heritage, and financially supported by the Society of Friends of the Polish Maritime Museum in Gdańsk.

This post is also available in: Polish