Baptism plaque for the Nautilus, a former American submarine equipped by the Australian explorer George Hubert Wilkins for an Arctic expedition in 1931
Bronze
MJV G103 (Donated by Jean Verne, 2005)
Sir George “Hubert” Wilkins, geographer, photographer and pilot, was an emblematic figure in polar exploration in the 1920s and 1930s. Aboard the submarine Nautilus, he attempted to be the first person to sail beneath the Arctic icecap. A feat that was successfully undertaken by another American submarine, the USS Nautilus, in 1958.
20th-century hard-hat diving suit
Diving suit composed of a 3-bolt helmet, a so-called “Peau-de-bouc” wetsuit, sinkers, lead-soled boots, belt and breathing tube
The first diving machines made their appearance in the early 18th century, followed by hard-hat diving suits in the early 19th century. These were used up until the mid-20th century, when they were replaced by autonomous diving suits equipped with air tanks, which were invented by the French engineers Benoît Rouquayrol and Auguste Denayrouze in 1864.
1000 Metres under the Sea
Chromolithographed illustration
Circa 1900
MJV C121
Physics Illustrated
Kessling & Cie, Brussels, 1860
Coloured lithographed illustration
MJV G188
The technical file accompanying this illustration notes that “we imagined dressing divers in a waterproof fabric. They wear helmets equipped with visors protected by thick glass; two tubes are attached to the helmet, one below, supplying fresh air, and the other above, receiving exhaled air”.
This hard-hat diving suit enabled a diver to walk on the bed of a body of water and breathe through a tube connected to the surface, where technicians supplied him with the necessary air by means of a pumping mechanism.
This suit differs from the more advanced autonomous diving suits featured in Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea. These were equipped with the apparatus patented by the French engineers Benoît Rouquayrol and Auguste Denayrouze, which gave divers great autonomy due to the individual breathable compressed air tanks they wore.
Didier Graffet
View of the Divers from Inside the Nautilus
Gouache on paper
Illustration for the Gründ edition, 2002
Acrylic on cardboard
MJV C483
Mickaël Ourghanlian, Didier Graffet
Objects from Captain Nemo’s sea chest, 2013
MJV G234
These contemporary objects were created by craftspeople following detailed instructions or based on preparatory sketches provided by the two artists. They are all functional, like the spyglass and the astrolabe.
Henri de la Blanchère
Underwater
Librairie Théodore Lefèvre et Cie, Paris, 19th century
MJV A156
Henri de la Blanchère (1821-1880) was a naturalist and photographer with a passion for ichthyology (the study of fish) and fishing; he wrote several books aimed at young readers.
Henri de la Blanchère
Voyage to the Bottom of the Sea
Édition Furne, Jouvet & Cie, Paris, circa 1865-1868
MJV A1315
With the underwater “expeditions” undertaken thanks to the first submarines and development of diving suits, the seabed came to fascinate writers.
This fairy tale, imbued as it is with poetry and implausibilities, gives free rein to the imagination.
Jules Verne
Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea
Éditions Hetzel, Paris, 1875-1878
MJV A357
This Voyage provided readers with detailed descriptions in the fields of oceanography and marine biology. The author also features developments in deep-sea diving. The names of Rouquayrol and Denayrouze, who invented an air tank used to equip autonomous diving suits, are mentioned several times.
Didier Graffet
Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea
Acrylic on cardboard
Illustration for the adaptation of Jules Verne’s novel
Éditions Gründ, 2002
MJV C484 (Purchased from the artist, 2012)
Jean-Marc Deschamps
Model of a diving suit inspired by the novel
Twenty Thousand Leagues under the Sea, 2003
MJV G178
