For the first time, visitors can see a remarkable painting believed to be the only known depiction of HMS Unicorn’s arrival in Dundee. Don’t miss the opportunity to experience this extraordinary artefact and witness the moment one of the world’s six oldest ships came home.

Now on display at HMS Unicorn, this remarkable late 19th-century Scottish Movement, romanticised oil painting by an unknown artist captures the ship being towed into the River Tay in November 1873. Rendered in atmospheric silvery tones, it records a pivotal moment in Dundee’s maritime history—the arrival of a ship that would become one of the city’s most enduring landmarks and an internationally significant part of the world’s naval heritage.

Ben Smith, CEO of the Unicorn Preservation Society, said:

“As one of the world’s six oldest ships still in existence, HMS Unicorn is recognised internationally not only for her age, but for the remarkable survival of her original fabric. Retaining around 90–95% of her historic structure, she is one of the most authentic historic ships anywhere in the world. This painting captures the moment she arrived in Dundee in November 1873 and began a relationship with the city that continues more than 150 years later. Believed to be the only known depiction of that historic journey into the Tay, it offers a powerful reminder that HMS Unicorn’s story is inseparable from Dundee’s own.”

A rare and evocative artefact, Unicorn Comes Home Again captures the beginning of a remarkable story that is still being written. More than 150 years after HMS Unicorn arrived in Dundee, visitors have the opportunity to stand where history, art and place meet. As you look from the painting to the ship herself, you are witnessing far more than a moment in time—you are becoming part of the continuing story of a vessel that has shaped Dundee, inspired generations, and remains one of the world’s most extraordinary historic ships.