Adults wanting to try something a little different during their next trip to the Otago Museum can learn more this week about one of the world's most baffling maritime mysteries.
Museum visitors can ''navigate the mystery of the Marie Celeste'' during a paid-entry ''Whodunnit Mystery'' evening of seafaring suspense tomorrow.
Built in Nova Scotia, Canada, in 1860, the Marie Celeste was a 31m-long cargo ship which set sail from New York, bound for Italy, in November 1872 with a cargo of raw alcohol. .
The ship was later found floating, but abandoned, in the Atlantic on December 4, 1872.
Captain Benjamin Briggs, his wife and daughter, and a crew of eight were never seen again.
Players in period costume will provide clues to help visitors get to the bottom of this real-life ''ghost ship'' mystery.
Bookings were essential for the 7pm event, and the $15 entry charge included a drink and canapes, organisers said.
The museum's director of visitor interaction and programmes, Helen Horner, said the museum wanted to provide ''engaging interactive experiences'', and the latest show followed the success of the museum's first ''Whodunnit Mystery'' night, last year.
Two trained actors on the museum staff were playing key roles, and the event aimed to entertain people in a different, more interactive way.
It was hoped to continue such ''Mystery'' evenings, based on scientific fact, in future, she said.
