The incredible Victorian shipwreck that can still be seen at low tide on a Yorkshire beach

She may have sunk 130 years ago - but as these pictures show a former Cunard liner which used to make the Liverpool - New York run is still in remarkably good shape.
The bows of the Earl of Beaconsfield rise from the sea at low waterThe bows of the Earl of Beaconsfield rise from the sea at low water
The bows of the Earl of Beaconsfield rise from the sea at low water

The Earl of Beaconsfield was run aground off a Yorkshire beach in the early hours of November 6 1887 - some say by a disgruntled member of crew - at the end of a long voyage to Calcutta.

Although there are thousands of wrecks underwater along Yorkshire's coast, the Earl of Beaconsfield is possibly unique.

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The 300-ft long ship ended up in fairly shallow water around a quarter of a mile out to sea - and on a daily basis at low water, the bows are revealed.

The bows stick out of the water - the figurehead was salvaged from the wreck in 1887 and is now in a museum in HullThe bows stick out of the water - the figurehead was salvaged from the wreck in 1887 and is now in a museum in Hull
The bows stick out of the water - the figurehead was salvaged from the wreck in 1887 and is now in a museum in Hull

To a casual onlooker standing on the beach at Aldbrough, she looks like a cardboard cut out. But those lucky enough to see her close up from a boat can see how substantial she is.

While most of the iron ship lies underwater and can only be visited by divers, her bows emerge as the tide falls. Surreally, as water rises and falls within the spaces in the bow, she seems to breathe like a whale.

The stout metal ring which held the bowsprit in place can still be seen - as can the four cavities - called hawsepipes - that the anchor chain used to pass through.

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Deck timbers survive and even a ladder into the chain locker - a space at the front of the bows where the anchor chain used to be stored - survives.

On board the Earl of Beaconsfield - the hatch to the anchor locker can be seen on the leftOn board the Earl of Beaconsfield - the hatch to the anchor locker can be seen on the left
On board the Earl of Beaconsfield - the hatch to the anchor locker can be seen on the left

When she sank in 1887, she was under sail, at the end of a long journey from Calcutta. All 37 crew escaped

The Sheffield Daily Telegraph reported: "The four-masted sailing ship Earl of Beaconsfield bound from Calcutta to Hull with wheat and linseed, went ashore yesterday morning at Aldborough, on the Yorkshire coast

Deck timbers still survive -despite exposure to saltwater over 130 yearsDeck timbers still survive -despite exposure to saltwater over 130 years
Deck timbers still survive -despite exposure to saltwater over 130 years

"She was still ashore this morning, and the crew remain on board engaged lightening her."

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Locals still remember stories handed down over the generations about the failed efforts to save her.

She was been built to order for the Cunard line more than 20 years earlier in 1864 at a cost of £110,000, and named Cuba.

She was considered a "good, economical steamer and popular passenger carrier."

The carved figurehead was salvaged from the ship. It now takes pride of place halfway up the stairs in Hull's Maritime MuseumThe carved figurehead was salvaged from the ship. It now takes pride of place halfway up the stairs in Hull's Maritime Museum
The carved figurehead was salvaged from the ship. It now takes pride of place halfway up the stairs in Hull's Maritime Museum

When sold to new owners D. Brown, of London in 1876, she was renamed the Earl of Beaconsfield in honour of Queen Victoria's favourite, the politician Benjamin Disraeli, and converted to a four-masted ship. Disraeli was Prime Minister at the time.

The distinctive figurehead, which was salvaged from the wreck, can be seen in Hull's Maritime Museum today.