Essential information
| Location | |
|---|---|
| Date and times | Open daily from 23 October 2026 | 10am-5pm |
| Price | Included with Cutty Sark entry |
| Members get year-round free entry. Not a Member? Join now |
Crew from more than 30 nations served on Cutty Sark during its sailing days, but little is known about their lives.
Black and Asian seafarers in the age of Cutty Sark is a new display that uncovers the experiences of Black, Chinese and Indian Ocean seafarers (known as 'lascars') who worked on the tea clipper – and other British naval and merchant vessels.
Spanning the 1860s to the 1920s, the display draws on extensive research undertaken by Aaron Jaffer, Curator of World History and Cultures at Royal Museums Greenwich, and volunteers from Unlocking Collections, a research project aimed at finding overlooked images in Royal Museums Greenwich’s collection.
Through historic photographs and illustrations, Black and Asian seafarers in the age of Cutty Sark highlights the varied duties carried out by international crews. It brings together stories of individuals such as James Robson, a Chinese-born seafarer who worked as a cook on board Cutty Sark, and explores how Black and Asian seafarers were depicted by artists and photographers.
The display coincides with the publication of Jaffer’s new book Black and Asian Seafarers: A Visual History. You can see these fascinating photos and images in the Dry Dock – entry is included with all tickets to Cutty Sark.
Look inside
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James Robson (right), a Chinese cook (formerly Able Seaman), with crewmen James Weston (left) and G. Thompson (centre) on board Cutty Sark, photographed by Captain Richard Woodget, 1880s
[30.11]
© National Maritime Museum
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Portrait of a man thought to be a lascar, by William Lionel Wyllie, undated
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© National Maritime Museum
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Illustrated music score for ‘Down Went the Captain’ featuring a Black crewmember, by Alfred Concanen (published by Hopwood & Crew), 1887
PBH1620
© National Maritime Museum
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Midshipmen in the gunroom of HMS Bellerophon attended by a Black steward, from the album of Rear-Admiral Edward Hilary Rymer, about 1892
ALB0929.22
© National Maritime Museum
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Chinese crew from HMS Scarab, from the album of Captain Gerald Edward Boultbee, about 1927
[MSS/85/167]
© National Maritime Museum
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A ship’s cook certificate issued by the Government of Bengal to a man recorded as ‘Chonu Allee’, 1922
[RSS/CC/B]
© National Maritime Museum
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