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The Gloucester: Items from 1682 shipwreck to go on display next year

News imageNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks/PA The brothers measuring a cannon underwaterNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks/PA
The 340-year-old Gloucester warship was discovered after a cannon was spotted by divers on the seabed

Items from a shipwreck hailed as one the UK's most important maritime finds will go on display next year.

The discovery of the Gloucester, which sank off the coast of Norfolk in 1682 and almost killed a future king, was made public in June.

Norwich Castle Museum and Art Gallery will host the exhibition from 25 February.

Margaret Dewsbury, from Norfolk County Council, said the museum was "incredibly excited".

News imageNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks Bottles from the GloucesterNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks
Bottles from the shipwreck were found covered in barnacles

The Gloucester's exact whereabouts were a mystery until it was discovered 15 years ago half-buried in the seabed 28 miles (45km) out to sea, having sunk while navigating treacherous sandbanks.

The disaster, in which hundreds of passengers and crew died, threatened to change the course of history.

News imageNational Maritime Museum, Greenwich Painting of the shipwrecked GloucesterNational Maritime Museum, Greenwich
Diarist and naval administrator Samuel Pepys witnessed the Gloucester's sinking

However, the then Duke of York fled the sinking ship with moments to spare and went on to become King James II of England - the Catholic heir to the Protestant throne in an era marked by religious and political unrest.

Norfolk brothers Julian and Lincoln Barnwell, together with their late father, friend James Little and another unnamed friend, spent four years on diving expeditions to find the Gloucester's watery grave.

Kept secret for years while objects were removed from the sea, it was hailed as the most important maritime find since the Mary Rose.

News imageNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks Comb from the GloucesterNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks
A number of personal items were found in the wreck, including a comb, which have been restored

Objects on display will include the Gloucester's bell, personal possessions of the passengers and crew, and the ship's navigation tools.

Visitors will also see how the wreck was discovered and the ongoing research into the ship by the University of East Anglia (UEA).

News imageNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks Spectacles from the GloucesterNorfolk Historic Shipwrecks
Among the items found were pair of spectacles and the wooden case

Museums in Britain and Europe will loan key paintings, documents and objects associated with the maritime, political, cultural and social history of the period for the exhibition.

Conservative councillor Ms Dewsbury, the county council's cabinet member for communities, said: "Norfolk is home not only to the most remarkable heritage, but also the expertise needed to research this heritage and display it for the public to experience and enjoy."

The exhibition will run until 10 September 2023.

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