Anchor of British Royal Navy vessel that was shipwrecked in 19th century recovered from façade of house in Spain

HMS Serpent met its end during a storm off the Spanish coast on the night of 10 November 1890, with the loss of 173 of its crew of 176

ABC

Galicia

Wednesday, 4 December 2024, 15:11 | Updated 15:36h.

The Guardia Civil police force in Spain has recovered an anchor that is believed have been part of the British Royal Navy vessel HMS Serpent, a ship wrecked in 1890 off the Costa da Morte, in A Coruña. The recovery was made after it was discovered that a local resident was using the anchor to decorate the façade of a house in the nearby town of Muxía.

The investigation started in June this year following a complaint lodged to Galician authorities. To then verify the complaint, Guardia Civil requested a report from specialists to determine the anchor found was the type used by the Royal Navy in the 19th century.

Imagen principal - Anchor of British Royal Navy vessel that was shipwrecked in 19th century recovered from façade of house in Spain — G.C.

Imagen secundaria 1 - Anchor of British Royal Navy vessel that was shipwrecked in 19th century recovered from façade of house in Spain — G.C.

Imagen secundaria 2 - Anchor of British Royal Navy vessel that was shipwrecked in 19th century recovered from façade of house in Spain

According to witness statements obtained by the Guardia Civil, the anchor was discovered in the area of Cabo Vilán, in Camariñas, around 25 years ago, when a fishing boat hooked the anchor with its nets. During the manoeuvre, the rigging broke and the anchor sank to the bottom, although the boat's skipper took note of the coordinates to try to recover it later.

The person now under investigation allegedly obtained the anchor some time later by means of a larger ship and used it as a house decoration. The suspect has been accused by the Guardia Civil of a crime against historical heritage, since the remains of shipwrecks prior to 1901 are protected by the law of cultural heritage of Galicia.

Shipwrecked in 1890

HMS Serpent was an Archer-class torpedo cruiser of nearly 2,000 tons displacement which entered Royal Navy service in 1888. The ship met its end on the fateful night of 10 November 1890.

That day, in the middle of a heavy storm and perhaps due to a navigational error, the ship ran aground and was lost with almost its entire crew: 173 of its 176 members died. Wreckage of the ship was scattered along the coast and its crew members were buried in what is known today as the English Cemetery, near Cape Vilán.

Galician cultural heritage law

According to the law, shipwrecks from before 1901 are considered protected cultural heritage. The legislation states that any object located and extracted without authorisation must be handed in to the ministry responsible for cultural heritage.

Together with the anchor that presumably belongs to the wreck of the HMS Serpent, Guardia Civil located two other anchors whose origin is also under investigation. The court has ordered the anchors be transferred and deposited in the Museo de Man, in Camelle (Camariñas), where they will be preserved while a more detailed analysis is carried out.

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