USS Missouri Model Ship – Washington, D.C. - Atlas Obscura
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USS Missouri Model Ship

Washington Navy Yard
Washington, D.C.

The U.S. Navy’s preposterously detailed mini battleship took 77,000 hours to complete.  

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The model was relocated from the Smithsonian in 2010. National Museum of the United States Navy/Public Domain
The model was relocated from the Smithsonian in 2010. National Museum of the United States Navy/Public Domain
Note the tiny desk where the Japanese signed an unconditional surrender. National Museum of the United States Navy/Public Domain
The model Missouri's 'official portrait' from the early 1950s. U.S. Navy
U.S.S. Missouri Model Ship blimpcaptain (Atlas Obscura User)
Sailors take in the details in 2014. Petty Officer 1st Class Stephen Hickok/Public Domain
U.S.S. Missouri Model Ship blimpcaptain (Atlas Obscura User)
U.S.S. Missouri Model Ship blimpcaptain (Atlas Obscura User)
U.S.S. Missouri Model blimpcaptain (Atlas Obscura User)
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There are countless model warships on display at the U.S. Navy Museum, ranging from wooden paddlewheelers to World War II flattops, but none of these miniature marvels could trade broadsides with the 19-foot-long model of the USS Missouri.

The little “Big Mo” was produced by the Gibbs & Cox naval architecture firm and depicts the ship’s appearance on September 2, 1945, at 9:02 a.m., the moment of a Japanese surrender ceremony on its deck that brought World War II to an end. According to the Curator of Navy Ship Models, “Special attention was to be devoted to flags and to detailing the table and chairs with the surrender documents in place.”

Gibbs & Cox had a team of 16 expert model makers working on the Missouri and finished it in 23 months, well ahead of the three years required to build the full-sized, 887-foot-long battleship! They achieved a level of detail that in places verges on the preposterous, and even the thickness of the gray coat of paint is to scale.

Know Before You Go

The museum is located on an active military base at the Washington Navy Yard. It's open to non-DOD visitors Monday - Friday.

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