Ghost ship
Encyclopedia
A ghost ship is a supposedly haunted or ghostly vessel, such as the Flying Dutchman.
The same term is also used to describe derelict ship
s found adrift with their entire crew either missing or dead, such as the Mary Celeste
or the Baychimo
.
It may sometimes also be used to refer to ships which have been decommissioned
but not yet scrapped
, such as the Clemenceau (R 98)
.
The same term is also used to describe derelict ship
Ship
Since the end of the age of sail a ship has been any large buoyant marine vessel. Ships are generally distinguished from boats based on size and cargo or passenger capacity. Ships are used on lakes, seas, and rivers for a variety of activities, such as the transport of people or goods, fishing,...
s found adrift with their entire crew either missing or dead, such as the Mary Celeste
Mary Celeste
The Mary Celeste was an American brigantine merchant ship famous for having been discovered on 4 December 1872, in the Atlantic Ocean unmanned and apparently abandoned , despite the fact that the weather was fine and her crew had been experienced and able...
or the Baychimo
Baychimo
The Baychimo was a steel 1,322 ton cargo steamer built in 1914 in Sweden and owned by the Hudson's Bay Company, used to trade pelts for provisions in Inuit settlements along the Victoria Island coast of the Northwest Territories of Canada...
.
It may sometimes also be used to refer to ships which have been decommissioned
Ship decommissioning
To decommission a ship is to terminate her career in service in the armed forces of her nation. A somber occasion, it has little of the elaborate ceremony of ship commissioning, but carries significant tradition....
but not yet scrapped
Ship breaking
Ship breaking or ship demolition is a type of ship disposal involving the breaking up of ships for scrap recycling. Most ships have a lifespan of a few decades before there is so much wear that refitting and repair becomes uneconomical. Ship breaking allows materials from the ship, especially...
, such as the Clemenceau (R 98)
Clemenceau (R 98)
Clemenceau , often affectionately called "le Clem'", was the lead ship of her class, and the 6th aircraft carrier of the French Navy, serving from 1961 to 1997. She was the second French warship to be named after Georges Clemenceau, the first one being a battleship of the Richelieu class, laid...
.
Chronology
Folklore, legends, and mythology
- Undated: The CaleucheCaleuche"The Caleuche" is a mythical ghost ship of the Chilote mythology and local folklore of the Chiloé Island, in Chile. It is one of the most important myths of the culture of Chile.-Legend:...
is a mythical ghost ship which, according to local folklore and Chilota mythologyChilota mythologyThe Chilote mythology or Chilota mythology is formed by the myths, legends and beliefs of the people who live in the Chiloé Archipelago, in the south of Chile...
, sails the seas around Chiloé IslandChiloé IslandChiloé Island , also known as Greater Island of Chiloé , is the largest island of the Chiloé Archipelago off the coast of Chile, in the Pacific Ocean...
, ChileChileChile ,officially the Republic of Chile , is a country in South America occupying a long, narrow coastal strip between the Andes mountains to the east and the Pacific Ocean to the west. It borders Peru to the north, Bolivia to the northeast, Argentina to the east, and the Drake Passage in the far...
, at night. - 1748: The Lady LovibondLady LovibondThe Lady Lovibond was a schooner that was wrecked on the Goodwin Sands, off the Kent coast of south-east England, on 13 February 1748, and is said to reappear there every fifty years as a ghost ship....
is said to have been deliberately wrecked on Goodwin SandsGoodwin SandsThe Goodwin Sands is a 10-mile-long sand bank in the English Channel, lying six miles east off Deal in Kent, England. The Brake Bank lying shorewards is part of the same geological unit. As the shoals lie close to major shipping channels, more than 2,000 ships are believed to have been wrecked...
on 13 February and to reappear off the KentKentKent is a county in southeast England, and is one of the home counties. It borders East Sussex, Surrey and Greater London and has a defined boundary with Essex in the middle of the Thames Estuary. The ceremonial county boundaries of Kent include the shire county of Kent and the unitary borough of...
coast every fifty years. - 1795 onwards: The Flying Dutchman, a ship manned by a captain condemned to eternally sail the seas, has long been the principle ghost ship legend among mariners and has inspired several works.
- 1858 onwards: The Eliza BattleEliza BattleThe Eliza Battle was a Tombigbee River steamboat that ran a route between Columbus, Mississippi and Mobile, Alabama during the 1850s. She was destroyed in a fire on the river near modern Pennington, Alabama on March 1, 1858...
, a paddle steamerPaddle steamerA paddle steamer is a steamship or riverboat, powered by a steam engine, using paddle wheels to propel it through the water. In antiquity, Paddle wheelers followed the development of poles, oars and sails, where the first uses were wheelers driven by animals or humans...
that burned in 1858 on the Tombigbee RiverTombigbee RiverThe Tombigbee River is a tributary of the Mobile River, approximately 200 mi long, in the U.S. states of Mississippi and Alabama. It is one of two major rivers, along with the Alabama River, that unite to form the short Mobile River before it empties into Mobile Bay on the Gulf of Mexico...
in AlabamaAlabamaAlabama is a state located in the southeastern region of the United States. It is bordered by Tennessee to the north, Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gulf of Mexico to the south, and Mississippi to the west. Alabama ranks 30th in total land area and ranks second in the size of its inland...
, is purported to reappear, fully aflame, on cold and windy winter nights to foretell of impending disaster.
Unsubstantiated
- 1775: The OctaviusOctavius (ship)The Octavius was a ghost ship, probably legendary and not actual. The story goes that the vessel was found west of Greenland by the whaler Herald on October 11, 1775....
, an English trading ship returning from ChinaChinaChinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
, was supposedly found drifting off the coast of GreenlandGreenlandGreenland is an autonomous country within the Kingdom of Denmark, located between the Arctic and Atlantic Oceans, east of the Canadian Arctic Archipelago. Though physiographically a part of the continent of North America, Greenland has been politically and culturally associated with Europe for...
. The captain's log showed that the ship had attempted the Northwest PassageNorthwest PassageThe Northwest Passage is a sea route through the Arctic Ocean, along the northern coast of North America via waterways amidst the Canadian Arctic Archipelago, connecting the Atlantic and Pacific Oceans...
, which had never been successfully traversed. The ship and the bodies of her frozen crew apparently completed the passage after drifting amongst the pack ice for 13 years. - 1840: The schooner JennySchooner JennyThe Jenny was a British schooner that reportedly became frozen in an ice-barrier of the Drake Passage in 1823, only to be rediscovered years later by a whaling ship, the bodies aboard being preserved by the Antarctic cold...
was supposedly discovered after spending 17 years frozen in an ice-barrier of the Drake PassageDrake PassageThe Drake Passage or Mar de Hoces—Sea of Hoces—is the body of water between the southern tip of South America at Cape Horn, Chile and the South Shetland Islands of Antarctica...
. Found by Captain Brighton of the whalerWhalerA whaler is a specialized ship, designed for whaling, the catching and/or processing of whales. The former included the whale catcher, a steam or diesel-driven vessel with a harpoon gun mounted at its bows. The latter included such vessels as the sail or steam-driven whaleship of the 16th to early...
Hope, it had been locked in the ice since 1823, the last port of call having been Lima, Peru. The bodies of the seven people aboard, including one woman and a dog, preserved by the Antarctic cold, were buried at sea by the crew of the Hope, and Brighton passed the account on to the AdmiraltyAdmiraltyThe Admiralty was formerly the authority in the Kingdom of England, and later in the United Kingdom, responsible for the command of the Royal Navy...
in LondonLondonLondon is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. The Jenny is commemorated by the Jenny Buttress, a feature on King George IslandKing George IslandKing George Island is the largest of the South Shetland Islands, situated at , off the coast of Antarctica in the Southern Ocean. The Island was named after King George III...
near Melville Peak, named by the UK Antarctic Place-Names CommitteeUK Antarctic Place-Names CommitteeThe UK Antarctic Place-Names Committee is a United Kingdom government committee, part of the Foreign and Commonwealth Office, responsible for recommending names of geographical locations within the British Antarctic Territory and the South Georgia and the South Sandwich Islands...
in 1960. - 1880: The ship Seabird, under the command of John Husham, grounds itself at Easton's Beach, Rhode IslandRhode IslandThe state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
. She had been returning from a voyage to HondurasHondurasHonduras is a republic in Central America. It was previously known as Spanish Honduras to differentiate it from British Honduras, which became the modern-day state of Belize...
and was expected in NewportNewportNewport is a city and unitary authority area in Wales. Standing on the banks of the River Usk, it is located about east of Cardiff and is the largest urban area within the historic county boundaries of Monmouthshire and the preserved county of Gwent...
that day. The ship was apparently abandoned in sight of land and drifted off course. The only living thing found on the ship was a dog. - 1947: The Ourang MedanOurang MedanThe S.S. Ourang Medan was a Dutch cargo ship, which, according to various authors, became a shipwreck in Indonesian waters after its entire crew had died under suspicious circumstances...
is said to have been found adrift off IndonesiaIndonesiaIndonesia , officially the Republic of Indonesia , is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania. Indonesia is an archipelago comprising approximately 13,000 islands. It has 33 provinces with over 238 million people, and is the world's fourth most populous country. Indonesia is a republic, with an...
with all of its crew dead. The boarding party found the entire crew "frozen, teeth baring, gaping at the sun." Before the ship could be towed to a home port, it exploded and sank.
Historically attested
- 1872: The Mary CelesteMary CelesteThe Mary Celeste was an American brigantine merchant ship famous for having been discovered on 4 December 1872, in the Atlantic Ocean unmanned and apparently abandoned , despite the fact that the weather was fine and her crew had been experienced and able...
, perhaps the most historically famous derelict, was found abandoned between PortugalPortugalPortugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the...
(mainland) and Portugal's AzoresAzoresThe Archipelago of the Azores is composed of nine volcanic islands situated in the middle of the North Atlantic Ocean, and is located about west from Lisbon and about east from the east coast of North America. The islands, and their economic exclusion zone, form the Autonomous Region of the...
archipelagoArchipelagoAn archipelago , sometimes called an island group, is a chain or cluster of islands. The word archipelago is derived from the Greek ἄρχι- – arkhi- and πέλαγος – pélagos through the Italian arcipelago...
. It was devoid of all crew, but largely intact and under sail, heading toward the Strait of GibraltarStrait of GibraltarThe Strait of Gibraltar is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Spain in Europe from Morocco in Africa. The name comes from Gibraltar, which in turn originates from the Arabic Jebel Tariq , albeit the Arab name for the Strait is Bab el-Zakat or...
. While Arthur Conan Doyle's story "J. Habakuk Jephson's StatementJ. Habakuk Jephson's Statement"J. Habakuk Jephson's Statement" is an 1884 short story by a then-young Arthur Conan Doyle, loosely based on the real mystery of the abandonment of the Mary Celeste, published anonymously in the January 1884 issue of the respected Cornhill Magazine. One reviewer sought to attribute the story to...
" based on this ship added some strange phenomena to the tale (such as that the tea found in the mess hall was still hot), the fact remained that the last log entry was 11 days prior to the discovery of the ship. - 1884: The Resolven was found abandoned between Baccalieu IslandBaccalieu IslandBaccalieu Island is a 5 km² uninhabited island at the northern extremities of Conception Bay near the community of Red Head Cove, Canada. It is separated from the island of Newfoundland by Baccalieu Tickle, a small strait and an abundant fishing ground....
and Catalina, Newfoundland and LabradorCatalina, Newfoundland and LabradorCatalina is a community located on the eastern side of the Bonavista Peninsula, in the province of Newfoundland, Canada. Catalina adjoins the union town of Port Union, the town built for and home to the Fisherman's Union Company established by Sir William Coaker.The name of the town is purported by...
, with her lifeboat missing. Other than a broken yard, she had suffered minimal damage. A large iceberg was sighted nearby. It has been claimed that none of the seven crew members or four passengers were accustomed to northern waters and it was suggested that they panicked when the ship was damaged by ice, launched the lifeboat, and swamped, though no bodies were found. Three years later, Resolven was wrecked while returning to Newfoundland from Nova Scotia with a load of lumber. - 1917: ZebrinaZebrina (ship)Zebrina was a schooner-rigged, 3-masted sailing barge, of 189 tons, built in 1873 at Whitstable, originally intended to trade in the River Plate. She was discovered aground on the coast of France in October 1917 with her crew missing....
, all hands missing. - 1921: The Carroll A. DeeringCarroll A. DeeringCarroll A. Deering was a five-masted commercial schooner that was found run aground off Cape Hatteras, North Carolina, in 1921. Its crew was mysteriously missing...
, a five-masted cargo schooner, was found stranded on a beach on Diamond Shoals, North CarolinaNorth CarolinaNorth Carolina is a state located in the southeastern United States. The state borders South Carolina and Georgia to the south, Tennessee to the west and Virginia to the north. North Carolina contains 100 counties. Its capital is Raleigh, and its largest city is Charlotte...
. The ship's final voyage had been the subject of much debate and controversy (see main article), and was investigated by six departments of the US government, largely because it was one of dozens of ships that sank or went missing within a relatively short period of time. While paranormal explanations have been advanced, the theories of mutiny or piracy are considered much more likely. - 1931: The BaychimoBaychimoThe Baychimo was a steel 1,322 ton cargo steamer built in 1914 in Sweden and owned by the Hudson's Bay Company, used to trade pelts for provisions in Inuit settlements along the Victoria Island coast of the Northwest Territories of Canada...
was abandoned in the Arctic OceanArctic OceanThe Arctic Ocean, located in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Arctic north polar region, is the smallest and shallowest of the world's five major oceanic divisions...
when it became trapped in pack ice and was thought doomed to sink, but remained afloat and was sighted numerous times over the next 38 years without ever being salvaged. - 1933: A lifeboatLifeboat (shipboard)A lifeboat is a small, rigid or inflatable watercraft carried for emergency evacuation in the event of a disaster aboard ship. In the military, a lifeboat may be referred to as a whaleboat, dinghy, or gig. The ship's tenders of cruise ships often double as lifeboats. Recreational sailors sometimes...
from the 1906 wreck of the passenger steamship SS ValenciaSS ValenciaThe SS Valencia was an iron-hulled passenger steamer wrecked off the coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia in 1906. Built in 1882 by William Cramp and Sons, she was a 1,598 ton vessel, 252 feet in length...
off the southwest coast of Vancouver IslandVancouver IslandVancouver Island is a large island in British Columbia, Canada. It is one of several North American locations named after George Vancouver, the British Royal Navy officer who explored the Pacific Northwest coast of North America between 1791 and 1794...
was found floating in the area in remarkably good condition 27 years after the sinking. Sailors have also reported seeing the ship itself in the area in the years following the sinking, often as an apparition that followed down the coast. - 1955: The MV JoyitaMV JoyitaMV Joyita was a merchant vessel from which 25 passengers and crew mysteriously disappeared in the South Pacific in 1955.-Construction:The 69-foot wooden ship was built in 1931 as a luxury yacht by the Wilmington Boat Works in Los Angeles for movie director Roland West...
was discovered abandoned in the PacificPacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
. A subsequent inquiry found the vessel was in a poor state of repair, but determined the fate of passengers and crew to be "inexplicable on the evidence submitted at the inquiry". - 1969: The Teignmouth ElectronDonald CrowhurstDonald Crowhurst was a British businessman and amateur sailor who died while competing in the Sunday Times Golden Globe Race, a single-handed, round-the-world yacht race. Crowhurst had entered the race in hopes of winning a cash prize from The Sunday Times to aid his failing business...
was found adrift and unoccupied in the AtlanticAtlantic OceanThe Atlantic Ocean is the second-largest of the world's oceanic divisions. With a total area of about , it covers approximately 20% of the Earth's surface and about 26% of its water surface area...
. Investigation led to the conclusion that its sole crewmember, Donald Crowhurst, had suffered a psychiatric breakdown while competing in a solo around-the-world raceSunday Times Golden Globe RaceThe Sunday Times Golden Globe Race was a non-stop, single-handed, round-the-world yacht race, held in 1968–1969, and was the first round-the-world yacht race...
and committed suicide by jumping overboard. - 2003: The High Aim 6High Aim 6High Aim 6 left the port of Liuchiu in southern Taiwan on 31 October 2002, and was then found without its crew, drifting in Australian waters, on 8 January 2003. The owner of the ship, Tsai Huang Shueh-er, spoke last with the captain in December 2002...
was found drifting in Australian waters, 80 nautical miles (148.2 km) east of Rowley ShoalsRowley ShoalsThe Rowley Shoals is a group of three atoll-like coral reefs south of the Timor Sea, about 260 km west of Broome on the northwestern Australian coast, centered around , on the edge of one of the widest continental shelves in the world. Each atoll covers an area of around 80 to 90 km² within the rim...
, with its crew missing. - 2006: The tankerTanker (ship)A tanker is a ship designed to transport liquids in bulk. Major types of tankship include the oil tanker, the chemical tanker, and the liquefied natural gas carrier.-Background:...
Jian SengJian SengThe Jian Seng was an 80-metre tanker of unknown origin that was spotted drifting 180 km south-west of Weipa, Queensland in the Gulf of Carpentaria by an Australian Coastwatch aeroplane in 2006...
was found off the coast of Weipa, QueenslandQueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
Australia in March. Its origin or owner could not be determined and it was scuttled in April. - 2006: In August the "Bel AmicaBel AmicaThe Bel Amica is a ghost ship discovered off the coast of island of Sardinia near Punta Volpe on August 24, 2006. The Italian Coast Guard discovered the ship with no crew on board. The coast guard boarded the vessel and steered her away from the rocks and shallow waters she was drifting towards...
" (which is one "L" short of the modern Italian spelling of "Good Friend") was discovered off the coast of SardiniaSardiniaSardinia is the second-largest island in the Mediterranean Sea . It is an autonomous region of Italy, and the nearest land masses are the French island of Corsica, the Italian Peninsula, Sicily, Tunisia and the Spanish Balearic Islands.The name Sardinia is from the pre-Roman noun *sard[],...
. The Coast Guard crew that discovered the ship found half eaten Egyptian meals, French maps of North African seas, and a flag of LuxembourgLuxembourgLuxembourg , officially the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg , is a landlocked country in western Europe, bordered by Belgium, France, and Germany. It has two principal regions: the Oesling in the North as part of the Ardennes massif, and the Gutland in the south...
on board. - 2007: A 12-metre catamaranCatamaranA catamaran is a type of multihulled boat or ship consisting of two hulls, or vakas, joined by some structure, the most basic being a frame, formed of akas...
, the Kaz IIKaz IIThe Kaz II, dubbed "the ghost yacht", is a 9.8-metre catamaran which was found drifting off of the northern coast of Australia on 18 April 2007...
, was discovered unmanned off the coast of QueenslandQueenslandQueensland is a state of Australia, occupying the north-eastern section of the mainland continent. It is bordered by the Northern Territory, South Australia and New South Wales to the west, south-west and south respectively. To the east, Queensland is bordered by the Coral Sea and Pacific Ocean...
, northeast Australia in April. The yacht, which had left Airlie BeachAirlie Beach, QueenslandAirlie Beach is a town in the Whitsunday Region of Queensland, Australia. At the 2006 census, the suburb of Airlie Beach itself had a population of 2,751. The greater Whitsunday region had a population of approximately 31,000...
on Sunday 15 April, was spotted about 80 nautical miles (148.2 km) off Townsville, near the outer Great Barrier ReefGreat Barrier ReefThe Great Barrier Reef is the world'slargest reef system composed of over 2,900 individual reefs and 900 islands stretching for over 2,600 kilometres over an area of approximately...
on the following Wednesday. When boarded on Friday, the engine was running, a laptopLaptopA laptop, also called a notebook, is a personal computer for mobile use. A laptop integrates most of the typical components of a desktop computer, including a display, a keyboard, a pointing device and speakers into a single unit...
was running, the radio and GPSGlobal Positioning SystemThe Global Positioning System is a space-based global navigation satellite system that provides location and time information in all weather, anywhere on or near the Earth, where there is an unobstructed line of sight to four or more GPS satellites...
were working and a meal was set to eat, but the three-man crew were not on board. All the sails were up but one was badly shredded, while three life jacketsPersonal flotation deviceA personal flotation device is a device designed to assist a wearer, either conscious or unconscious, to keep afloat.Devices designed and approved by authorities for use by...
and survival equipment, including an emergency beacon, were found on board. A search for the crew was abandoned on Sunday 22nd as it was considered unlikely that anyone could have survived for that period of time. - 2008: The abandoned 50 ton Taiwanese fishing vessel Tai Ching 21 was found drifting near KiribatiKiribatiKiribati , officially the Republic of Kiribati, is an island nation located in the central tropical Pacific Ocean. The permanent population exceeds just over 100,000 , and is composed of 32 atolls and one raised coral island, dispersed over 3.5 million square kilometres, straddling the...
on 9 November. The ship had suffered a fire several days previously, and its lifeboat and three life rafts were missing. No mayday call was received, and the ship had last been heard from on 28 October. A search of 21,000 square miles (54,000 square km) of the Pacific OceanPacific OceanThe Pacific Ocean is the largest of the Earth's oceanic divisions. It extends from the Arctic in the north to the Southern Ocean in the south, bounded by Asia and Australia in the west, and the Americas in the east.At 165.2 million square kilometres in area, this largest division of the World...
north of FijiFijiFiji , officially the Republic of Fiji , is an island nation in Melanesia in the South Pacific Ocean about northeast of New Zealand's North Island...
by a US Air Force C-130 Hercules and a New Zealand Air Force P-3 Orion found no trace of the Taiwanese captain (顏金港) or crew (18 Chinese, 6 Indonesians, and 4 Filipinos).
Film
- 1935: The Mystery of the Marie CelesteThe Mystery of the Marie CelesteThe Mystery of the Marie Celeste is one of the early films from Hammer Film Productions and was directed by Denison Clift. The leading actor is Béla Lugosi....
(a.k.a. The Phantom Ship) offers a fictional explanation for the events leading up to the discovery of the most famous of abandoned ships. - 1943: The Ghost ShipThe Ghost ShipThe Ghost Ship is a black-and-white horror and crime film starring Richard Dix, Russell Wade, and Skelton Knaggs. The film is about a young merchant marine officer who begins to suspect that his ship's captain is mentally unbalanced and endangering the lives of the ship's crew...
tells of mysterious deaths among the crew of the Altair, for which it is suspected the insane captain is responsible. - 1952: Ghost ShipGhost Ship (1952 film)Ghost Ship is a 1952 British thriller film directed by Vernon Sewell and written by Vernon Sewell and Philip Thornton. Despite the same titles, the 2002 film of the same title is not considered a remake of this film. -Plot:...
is set aboard a yacht haunted by two murder victims (the previous owner's wife and her lover) whose bodies have been hidden under the floor. - 1980: Death ShipDeath Ship (1980 film)Death Ship is a 1980 horror film directed by Alvin Rakoff. The cast includes Academy Award winner George Kennedy, Richard Crenna, Sally Ann Howes, and Black Christmas actor Nick Mancuso.-Plot:...
is about a lost Nazi German prison ship that is still being crewed by the evil spirits of the dead crew. It now roams the seas for new victims, picking up survivors to abuse and kill after it sinks their ships. - 1997: Event HorizonEvent Horizon (film)Event Horizon is a 1997 science fantasy horror film. The screenplay was written by Philip Eisner and directed by Paul W. S. Anderson. The film stars Laurence Fishburne and Sam Neill...
is a spaceship which disappeared while testing an experimental propulsion system, then returned intact seven years later but with no crew, life support offline, and data recordings scrambled. The investigating team soon encounters an evil presence that the ship brought back with it. - 2001: The TriangleThe Triangle (film)The Triangle is a 2001 thriller television movie released August 13, 2001 starring Luke Perry and Dan Cortese. It was directed by Lewis Teague, and filmed in the Barbados and Canada.-Plot:...
has the tagline: "60 years ago, the Queen of Scots vanished in the Bermuda TriangleBermuda TriangleThe Bermuda Triangle, also known as the Devil's Triangle, is a region in the western part of the North Atlantic Ocean where a number of aircraft and surface vessels allegedly disappeared under mysterious circumstances....
. Now four friends have found the unthinkable... or has it found them?" - 2002: Ghost Ship is about the Antonia Graza, an Italian ocean liner lost at sea 40 years earlier, and now boarded by a salvage crew who soon encounter the ghostly apparitions of murdered passengers.
- 2003: Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black PearlPirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black PearlPirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl is a 2003 adventure fantasy film based on the Pirates of the Caribbean ride at Disney theme parks. It was directed by Gore Verbinski and produced by Jerry Bruckheimer...
had the Black PearlBlack PearlThe Black Pearl, originally Wicked Wench, is a fictional ship in the Pirates of the Caribbean film series. In the screenplay, the Black Pearl is easily recognized by her distinctive black hull and sails. The ship was originally named Wicked Wench before she was ordered burned and sunk by Lord Beckett...
as a ghost ship. Its sequels Dead Man's ChestPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's ChestPirates of the Caribbean: Dead Man's Chest is a 2006 adventure fantasy film and the second film of the Pirates of the Caribbean series, following Pirates of the Caribbean: The Curse of the Black Pearl . It was directed by Gore Verbinski, written by Ted Elliott and Terry Rossio, and produced by...
(2006) and At World's End (2007) feature another ghost ship Flying Dutchman. - 2007: SunshineSunshine (2007 film)Sunshine is a 2007 British science fiction film directed by Danny Boyle and written by Alex Garland about the crew of a spacecraft on a dangerous mission to the Sun. In 2057, with the Earth in peril from the dying Sun, the crew is sent to reignite the Sun with a massive stellar bomb with the mass...
concerns a spacecraft, the Icarus IIIcarus-Space and astronomy:* Icarus , on the Moon* Icarus , a planetary science journal* 1566 Icarus, an asteroid* IKAROS, a interplanetary unmanned spacecraft...
, sent to "re-ignite" the dying sun with a massive bomb some years after the Icarus I failed to complete a similar mission and was lost. As the new crew approach their destination, they discover the original ship and board it to investigate.
Literature
- 1798: A "skeleton ship" crewed by two spectres features in Samuel Taylor ColeridgeSamuel Taylor ColeridgeSamuel Taylor Coleridge was an English poet, Romantic, literary critic and philosopher who, with his friend William Wordsworth, was a founder of the Romantic Movement in England and a member of the Lake Poets. He is probably best known for his poems The Rime of the Ancient Mariner and Kubla...
's The Rime of the Ancient MarinerThe Rime of the Ancient MarinerThe Rime of the Ancient Mariner is the longest major poem by the English poet Samuel Taylor Coleridge, written in 1797–98 and was published in 1798 in the first edition of Lyrical Ballads. Modern editions use a later revised version printed in 1817 that featured a gloss...
. - 1897: The Demeter, found derelict with its captain's corpse tied to the helm, is featured in Bram StokerBram StokerAbraham "Bram" Stoker was an Irish novelist and short story writer, best known today for his 1897 Gothic novel Dracula...
's DraculaDraculaDracula is an 1897 novel by Irish author Bram Stoker.Famous for introducing the character of the vampire Count Dracula, the novel tells the story of Dracula's attempt to relocate from Transylvania to England, and the battle between Dracula and a small group of men and women led by Professor...
. - 1913: The Abel Fosdyk papersAbel Fosdyk papersThe Abel Fosdyk papers is an apocryphal explanation of the fate of the Mary Celeste which was presented on its original publication in 1913 as true but which is most likely a literary hoax.-Publication:...
, an apocryphal explanation of the fate of the Mary Celeste, were presented as a true account by A. Howard Linford of Magdalen College, OxfordMagdalen College, OxfordMagdalen College is one of the constituent colleges of the University of Oxford in England. As of 2006 the college had an estimated financial endowment of £153 million. Magdalen is currently top of the Norrington Table after over half of its 2010 finalists received first-class degrees, a record...
, the headmaster of Peterborough Lodge, HampsteadHampsteadHampstead is an area of London, England, north-west of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Camden in Inner London, it is known for its intellectual, liberal, artistic, musical and literary associations and for Hampstead Heath, a large, hilly expanse of parkland...
's largest prep schoolPreparatory school (UK)In English language usage in the former British Empire, the present-day Commonwealth, a preparatory school is an independent school preparing children up to the age of eleven or thirteen for entry into fee-paying, secondary independent schools, some of which are known as public schools...
. The story appeared under the title Abel Fosdyk's Story in the monthly fiction magazine Strand MagazineStrand MagazineThe Strand Magazine was a monthly magazine composed of fictional stories and factual articles founded by George Newnes. It was first published in the United Kingdom from January 1891 to March 1950 running to 711 issues, though the first issue was on sale well before Christmas 1890.Its immediate...
, which had invited its contributors and readers to suggest possible solutions to the mystery of the Mary Celeste. - 1937: "Three Skeleton Key", a short story by George Toudouze about a ghost ship infested with sea rats, was originally written for EsquireEsquire (magazine)Esquire is a men's magazine, published in the U.S. by the Hearst Corporation. Founded in 1932, it flourished during the Great Depression under the guidance of founder and editor Arnold Gingrich.-History:...
magazine. It was adapted for the dramatic radio program EscapeEscape (radio program)Escape was radio's leading anthology series of high-adventure radio dramas, airing on CBS from July 7, 1947 to September 25, 1954. Since the program did not have a regular sponsor like Suspense, it was subjected to frequent schedule shifts and lower production budgets, although Richfield Oil signed...
in 1949 by James PoeJames PoeJames Poe was an American film and television screenwriter. He is best known for his work on the movies Cat on a Hot Tin Roof, Lilies of the Field, Around the World in 80 Days and They Shoot Horses, Don't They?.He also worked as a writer on the radio shows Escape and Suspense, writing the scripts...
and was also broadcast on the SuspenseSuspense (radio program)-Production background:One of the premier drama programs of the Golden Age of Radio, was subtitled "radio's outstanding theater of thrills" and focused on suspense thriller-type scripts, usually featuring leading Hollywood actors of the era...
radio drama series in the 1950s. - 1965: The Ampoliros, the Flying Dutchman of space, is mentioned in Frank HerbertFrank HerbertFranklin Patrick Herbert, Jr. was a critically acclaimed and commercially successful American science fiction author. Although a short story author, he is best known for his novels, most notably Dune and its five sequels...
's DuneDune (novel)Dune is a science fiction novel written by Frank Herbert, published in 1965. It won the Hugo Award in 1966, and the inaugural Nebula Award for Best Novel...
. - 2001: The Flying Dutchman plays a key part of Brian JacquesBrian JacquesJames Brian Jacques was an English author best known for his Redwall series of novels and Castaways of the Flying Dutchman series. He also completed two collections of short stories entitled The Ribbajack & Other Curious Yarns and Seven Strange and Ghostly Tales.-Biography:Brian Jacques was born...
' series Castaways of the Flying DutchmanCastaways of the Flying DutchmanCastaways of the Flying Dutchman is the first novel in the Castaways series by Brian Jacques, published in 2001. It is based on the legend of the cursed ship the Flying Dutchman...
.