Le Griffon ghost ship

Le Griffon ghost ship

AAT:
Street art
Public art

LCSH:
Griffon (Ship).
Ghost stories, American.
Shipwrecks--Lake Huron.

Top left figure depicts a ship sailing on clouds above the water underneath the full moon. Top right figure depicts a griffon resting atop an admiralty boat anchor. Bottom figure depicts two men singing with a bar of music behind them. All figures are surrounded by a rope border with sailor knots for accents. Underneath painting, item is title 'LE GRIFFON GHOST SHIP'.

Alex Gilford

Created: 2018
Photographed: 2023-08-31

Steve Seery (Installation)

The rights and intellectual property for this image is likely the original creator. The original creator or their representative should be contacted and consulted on the terms of using this image.

Part of Art in Woodbridge Project.

Materials: paint on board
Extent: 6 x 4 ft.

English
French

Still Image

DMM-2022-00101

From the artist's website: "The French explorer, René-Robert Cavalier, Sieur de La Salle and his crew built Le Griffon in the wilderness near Niagara river. It was the first full-size European sailing ship to navigate the upper Great Lakes. The vessel disappeared in 1679 after departing from present-day Wisconsin and sailing into Lake Michigan (then called Lac des Illinois) with a load of furs. To this day, the ship’s final resting place is yet to be discovered. It is said that “…on bright moonlight nights they hear a chorus of manly voices chanting the evening hymn, and frequently the image of a phantom ship is seen in the clouds,” Marie Caroline Watson Hamlin. “The Baptism of Lake Sainte Claire. A Legend of the Griffin’s Voyage.” Legends of le Détroit. Many consider Le Griffon to be the original Great Lakes ghost ship."

Gilford, A. (n.d.). Riparian Arts Project. Alex Gilford. Retrieved on March 2, 2024 from: https://alexgilford.carbonmade.com/riparian-arts-project

Address: 1532 W Hancock St, Detroit, MI 48208 (installed on E side facing alley).
Coordinates: 42.350900967234324, -83.07879959617692