Ax exhibition of life-boats through the ages was opened at Life-boat House, 42, Grosvenor Gardens, London, S.W.I, by Commodore the Earl Howe, deputy chairman of the Institution, on the 3rd of December, 1954.

The exhibition contains fourteen models of life-boats ranging in period from 1789 to 1954. The earliest is a model of the Original, which was built by Henry Greathead, and the latest is a model of the new St. Peter Port life-boat. Other models on show are those of a life-boat designed by George Palmer in 1826; life-boats sent to Rhoscolyn in 1878, New Romney in 1884, Rhyl in 1896, Padstow in 1899, Walton in 1928, Hastings in 1931, the Lizard in 1934, Hastings in 1936 and Holy head in 1950. There are also models of a Norfolk and Suffolk boat made in 1890 and of a Watson boat made in 1931.

Other exhibits include a typescript corrected in his own hand of a tribute to the Life-boat Service by Joseph Conrad; a signed photograph of Henry Blogg; a round robin letter signed by 31 leading British artists in the 1890's protesting against the blue in the life- boat's colours; and the appeal made to the British nation by Sir William Hillary in 1823 for the foundation of a Life-boat Service.

The opening of the exhibition was shown on the B.B.C's television news- reel and a report on it made in Radio Newsreel. Admission to the exhibi- tion is free.

The Institution also exhibited at the National Boat Show organised by the Daily Express at Olympia from the 30th of December, 1954, to the 8th of January, 1955. Free space was given for the stand by the Ship and Boat- builders Federation.

The National Boat Show was form- ally opened by Coxswain Harold Bradford of Exmouth, who was at the time the recipient of the latest medal for gallantry awarded by the Institu- tion. Coxswain Bradford was intro- duced by the Hon. Max Aitken, vice- chairman of Beaverbrook Newspapers.

The National Boat Show was visited by 120,851 people.

The exhibition at Headquarters was temporarily closed while some of the exhibits were on show at Olympia, but it has since been reopened to the public..