The HMS Terror

Man proposes God disposes.  The HMS Terror a never ending tale of horror.  This story has it all.  In its first incarnation she ferried Brittish troops during the revolutionary war and was in the harbor when the Star Spangled Banner was composed.  From there she joined in the pursuit to find the northwest passage in the Arctic where it became the poster child of all things shipwreck.  Mysterious sinking, check, cannibalism check, beautiful preserved artifacts like China and journals, check.  This painting by Edwin Landseer.  It hangs in the Royal Holloway, University of London and has haunted students since the 1920’s.  Associated with failure, the painting is ceremoniously covered during all exams.