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One of the most evocative and beautiful decorations gracing Queen Elizabeth 2’s famous Heritage Trail is the splendid illuminated builder’s model of Mauretania that serves as the highlight of the Quarter Deck lobby on the main staircase outside the Caronia Restaurant. Perhaps the vessel’s most popular photographic opportunity for passengers, it shows signs of needing some basic maintenance work and slight repair.
On a recent crossing, your Editor noticed that the vertical panes of plate glass providing protection
for the model have 1/8-inch separations between them. Over the years, this has allowed the admission of
dust which now coats all the decks, funnels and fittings of Mauretania to an alarming degree. Furthermore, some of the rigging supporting the foremast has come adrift and hangs now in unsightly festoons over the
starboard side.
At the very least, that rigging should be overhauled and made secure. Moreover, the entire model
could use some dedicated care and cleaning.
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David Hamilton, QE2’s hotel director at the time, told your Editor that there is, he believes, some
mechanism inside the case (presumably beneath the model) that was originally designed to prohibit the
intrusion of dust although he agreed that it is patently no longer working. Short of reactivating that
mechanism, perhaps there might be a way to close those gaps in the glass so that, once cleaned, the model might remain longer in its original pristine condition.
This seems an ideal opportunity for the Museum to lend its expertise and elbow grease to the
company so that Mauretania will continue to serve as glowing focal point for QE2 passengers. An approach
will be made to company headquarters.
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