Museum ship Mercator closes early May for works

​Mercator has been at its new location on the quay of Jan Piersplein in Ostend since March 28. The displacement of the ship was necessary to carry out work on the masts.

Steel yards

A specialized company will start removing the yardarms in the first week of May (horizontal spars on the foremast, ed.) and the trees. Instead, steel yards will be installed to extend the lifespan from 20 to 50 years.

“The steel yards have exactly the same appearance as the current wooden yards and have been approved by the Immovable Heritage Agency. The steel yards can also be used perfectly to put the ship under sail, should this ever happen again,” says the city.

Closed

The complete rope work with blocks will also be renewed. All works together are estimated at 500,000 euros, for which the city receives support from the Agency for Real Estate Heritage.

To safely carry out the works, the museum ship will be closed to the public from 1 to 7 May.