The Escuriel was lost off the coast of the village of Portreath, Cornwall, in 1895 and, despite a mission by lifeboat F.H. Harrison, not all of the 20 crew could be saved
These incredible images show what is believed to be the wreckage of a ship which sank off the British coast 129 years ago.
Divers believe they’ve found the remains of the Escuriel, which got into difficulty near Portreath, Cornwall, in 1895. Not all of the 20 crew could be saved and, more than a century on, the shipwreck remains unphotographed and undocumented.
But Rachael Edmuns and Triston Walford think they stumbled upon what they believed to be its anchor this summer. After further diving sessions, they now believe they have also found the wreck.
Speaking of the discovery, keen diver Rachael, from Tolvaddon, Cornwall, said: “I don’t believe anyone has taken pictures or documented it. We found the anchor a few weeks before finding the wreck. It’s still intact and covers a lot of the seabed.”
The pals shared their images with our sister title Cornwall Live, which reports Rachael and Triston first uncovered the anchor back in May but struggled to find it on returning to the scene. Later they were able to return and capture images of it.
Then, in August, they came across what they believe to be the ship’s actual wreckage and took some captivating photos of it and the surrounding sealife.
SS Escurial was an iron-built schooner-rigged screw steamer built by Alex Stephens of Lighthouse, Govan, for Raeburn and Verel of Glasgow in 1879. On January 25, 1895, she was outward bound from Cardiff, carting 1,350 tons of coal for the Adriatic port of Fiume.
The weather was described as bitterly cold with the threat of snow when she suffered an engine room leak that ended in tragedy. Despite efforts to reduce the water intake things were complicated by failing machinery and already injured crew members. Life belts were issued and distress signals fired but as dusk fell, the strong gales increased.
The Hayle lifeboat came to her aid but had to be taken overland to Portreath to be launched and several rescue attempts were made. Shipwrecked men were seen swimming from the sinking ship but only eleven were saved with nine drowning.
