Construction of the Riverfront Theatre in Newport began in May of 2002, a month later construction was halted as a 15th century ship was discovered while digging the foundations for the theatre’s orchestra pit in the bed of the river Usk. The ship was exceptionally well preserved and after its six month excavation, construction of the theatre continued with the aim to permanently display the rebuilt ship in the gallery space underneath the theatre.

Local government funding for the conservation of The Newport Ship has dried up with only around 60% of the ships excavated timbers being conserved. The ship is now in storage and it is highly unlikely that it will be reconstructed in its entirety, in the gallery of the Riverfront Theatre.

The process of conserving submerged maritime archaeological discoveries is an expensive and time consuming one. Every individual piece of the ship has to be cleaned and documented, then it undergoes a complex process of having all of the moisture within the material driven out, to then be replaced by a preservation rubber or wax like substance.

Cetology is the branch of zoology that deals with whales, dolphins and porpoises. It is also the title of the 32nd chapter of Herman Melville’s Moby Dick in which the antagonist (the white whale) is described in meticulously and almost agonising detail. This chapter’s archival and scientific nature, reflects the process of the restoration of The Newport Ship, and the ship itself is the white whale to the theatres Ahab.

While working collaboratively with the charity concerned with the funding of the restoration of The Newport Ship, a restored timber was gifted to Farthing as part of a group exhibition of local artists. The timber was then displayed shrouded in a tightly clung latex sheet to deny viewers a glimpse of the ship that has been denied its rightful and permanent home.

Sadly the future of the ship is uncertain

Find out more about The Newport Ship and how you can help The Friends of the Newport Ship here.