The mine sweeper HMAS TEAL, built for the British Royal Navy, later serving in the Royal Australian Navy, and one of the last surviving examples of its class with approximately 80 years of history, is being reborn as a Maritime Museum in Kyrenia Port. Focusing on the maritime heritage of the Mediterranean and Cyprus, the museum will bring together historical artifacts, maritime collections, and contemporary art works in one space, and will begin welcoming visitors as of August 1st.
With approximately 80 years of history, witnessing battles on the oceans, international missions, and significant turning points in maritime history, HMAS TEAL is ready for its most meaningful journey. The historic ship, which once ensured security at sea, is getting ready to open its doors as a Maritime Museum, hosting knowledge, culture, and art, following the completion of transformation work in Kyrenia Commercial Port. The museum will center on the maritime heritage of the Mediterranean and Cyprus. It brings together historical maritime objects, maritime collections, and contemporary art works in the same space.
The ship, built in England as HMS JACTON and later added to the Royal Australian Navy’s inventory as HMAS TEAL, served in many important military operations during its service. The HMS abbreviation in the ship’s name stands for “Her/His Majesty’s Ship.” Having witnessed different periods of war and peace, and served on different continents, this historic ship holds a privileged place in world maritime history not only for its military past but also for being one of the last ships of its class still standing today. HMAS TEAL is notable as the last example of the “Ton-class”, a class of minehunting and minesweeping ships developed by the British Royal Navy in the 1950s.
The story of HMAS TEAL is not limited to its military past. Having served for many years in the British Royal Navy and then the Australian Royal Navy, the historic ship remained at sea even after retiring from the Australian Navy in 1973. In its subsequent life, the ship undertook various roles; continuing to serve as a diving support vessel, passenger ship, and fishing vessel. HMAS TEAL, maintaining its connection with the sea for various purposes, has become a living legacy representing different facets of maritime life throughout its nearly seventy-year journey.
From Mine Layer to Training Ship that Trained Hundreds of Captains
Brought to Cyprus in 1994, the historic ship undertook perhaps its most lasting and meaningful mission here. For many years, HMAS TEAL was used in the practical training of the Maritime Faculties of Near East University and Kyrenia University, enabling the training of hundreds of captains, deck officers, and maritime professionals. Many captains and sailors serving in different seas around the world today received their first practical training on the deck of this historic ship. Now, as a Maritime Museum, it is getting ready to bring together all these past roles under one roof, passing on maritime history to future generations.
Preserving the Maritime Memory of the Mediterranean
HMS JACTON / HMAS TEAL is gaining a new identity in Kyrenia, preserving all these layers of its past. The Maritime Museum, established in the Kyrenia Commercial Port, will not only be a museum telling the story of the ship itself. It will present visitors with a rich collection showcasing the thousands of years of maritime culture of the Mediterranean, the port history of Cyprus, trade routes, naval battles, fishing culture, and the development of maritime technologies. Original maritime artifacts, historical documents, maps, navigation devices, and maritime objects displayed in different sections of the museum will tell visitors the centuries-long story of the Mediterranean’s relationship with the sea. One of the most striking features of the museum will be its integration of history and contemporary art in the same space. Many sections of the ship, from the bridge to the living quarters, from the engine room to the decks, have been transformed into special exhibition areas integrated with modern art works on maritime themes. Thus, visitors will not only tour a historic warship and training vessel, they will also have the opportunity to experience the cultural memory of the Mediterranean through the universal language of art.
HMAS TEAL, which once cleared mines and opened safe routes in the seas, is now charting new routes that connect people to knowledge, history, and art. Its decks, where hundreds of captains were trained, will now welcome visitors. Its steel hull, a witness to war, will henceforth serve as a living museum carrying the shared memory of the Mediterranean into the future.
The HMAS TEAL Maritime Museum, poised to become a symbol of a new era in Kyrenia Commercial Port, will welcome visitors as an exemplary cultural project on an international scale, preserving, narrating, and reinterpreting maritime history.
Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel: “Our Maritime Museum will be much more than just preserving a historical ship with approximately 80 years of history; it will be a living cultural center that will transmit the maritime heritage of the Mediterranean and Cyprus to future generations.”
Stating that “the future of a country is shaped by its will to protect its culture, history, and shared memory”, Prof. Dr. İrfan Suat Günsel, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Near East Enterprises, said, “Our Maritime Museum will be much more than just preserving a historical ship with approximately 80 years of history; it will be a living cultural center that will transmit the maritime heritage of the Mediterranean and Cyprus to future generations.”
Prof. Dr. Günsel emphasized that Near East University is resolutely continuing its vision of bringing science, culture, and art together under one roof. İrfan Suat Günsel further said, “Following the Cyprus Modern Art Museum, the Cyprus Car Museum, the GÜNSEL Art Museum, the Walled City Museum, and the Cyprus Herbarium and Natural History Museum, we are increasing the number of active museums established by our university to six with the Maritime Museum. This network of museums, created around different themes, preserves our country’s cultural heritage with its rich collections ranging from millions of years of natural heritage to maritime history, from automotive culture to contemporary art and urban memory, while also making Cyprus an important international cultural and museology destination. I wholeheartedly believe that the Maritime Museum, as one of the strongest links in this vision, will make significant contributions to the country’s tourism, cultural life, and the historical awareness of future generations.”