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Search for the MedusaIn mid-afternoon on a sunny July day in 1816 the French frigate Medusa ran aground on the treacherous Arguin Bank, off the west coast of Africa. The events that followed earned the ship a permanent and prominent place in the annals of infamous sea disasters. 150 men and women were abandoned on a makeshift raft. When the raft was found by chance two weeks later only 15 remained alive, the rest having fallen victim to the sea, to mutiny, to starvation, and to cannibalism. The shipwreck and all that followed were the result of incompetent leadership, and when the tale reached France it caused a major political scandal, nearly toppling the government. The story captured the imagination of the young artist Theodore Gericault, inspiring him to use it as the subject of a grand painting for the Paris Salon of 1819. Gericault's Scene of a Shipwreck (now known as Raft of the Medusa) was a sensation and proved to be a pivotal work in art history. It survives today as one of the treasures of the Louvre, and yet many people are unaware that it was based on an historical event.
In 1980 a French marine archaeological expedition sailed to the still-uncharted waters of the Arguin Bank, located the shipwreck site, and recovered enough identifying artifacts to prove that the ship had been found. NightSea founder Charles Mazel, PhD, was the expedition's Technical Director. He has a one-hour illustrated presentation that recounts three stories: the events of the shipwreck, including its causes and aftermath; how Gericault came to paint his masterpiece; and the expedition to locate the Medusa's remains. The presentation has been given many times to a variety of audiences. Please contact Charlie by e-mail or telephone (contact information below) for more information or to book a lecture.
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