The Schip model in Aberdeen: profane sculpture in a sacred space

Abstract

This article looks at the tradition of hanging model ships in Scottish churches, and considers in detail the background to one of the oldest examples in Britain: the model of a Dutch fifth-rate frigate, known as the Schip, which hung in St Nicholas Kirk, Aberdeen from 1689. These models are often referred to as ‘votive ships’; however, this designation is far from accurate for these post-Reformation sculptures. In this article I explore what these models can tell us about the social standing of shipmasters and the power politics of display in the church space. I will also consider how the Schip model has been modified and restored over the centuries to be displayed now in Aberdeen Maritime Museum as a relic of the city’s maritime past.