PORTSMOUTH.- The Mary Rose Museum at Portsmouth Historic Dockyard welcomed its 1 millionth visitor today following its opening just over two years ago.

The 1 millionth visitors Peter and Cathy White from Devon were presented with a Mary Rose decanter by Rear Admiral John Lippiett, Chief Executive of the Mary Rose Trust, and given a special tour of the museum including the secondary collection.

John Lippiett said "The Mary Rose Trust is exceptionally pleased to have welcomed this morning our one millionth visitor to the new museum. To reach this figure in less than 28 months is an extraordinary achievement and beats all predictions. Portsmouth Historic Dockyard goes from strength to strength, and the investment by the Heritage Lottery Fund and the many other Trusts and individual donors who have been so generous has paid off handsomely. It is estimated that the museum has in these last two years earned the region more than twice the cost of the building of the museum. One notable feature is that not only have we received a very large number of national awards, but also we have been exceptionally highly rated by the visitors coming to see us. A remarkable number say that the Mary Rose is the best museum that they have ever visited.

The future is exciting, and further improvements to the exhibition will commence later this year."

Robert Lapraik, Deputy Chief Executive of the Mary Rose Trust said “It’s fabulous to have reached this 1 million milestone so quickly. This reflects the real interest that people have in the Mary Rose story which is told so well through the new museum, its staff and volunteers.”

Since opening The Mary Rose Museum has seen significant achievements winning over 20 awards for excellence in design, construction, exhibition, conservation, visitor experience, education and innovation. This includes a special commendation at the European Museum of the Year Awards 2015 and two awards at the Museums & Heritage Awards for Excellence 2014 in the Permanent Exhibition and Restoration/Conservation categories.

The Mary Rose continues to engage loyal and new visitors and this exciting milestone comes as the museum enters a new phase. Phase two of the Mary Rose Museum will improve the visitor experience by providing uninterrupted views of the ship from the walkways as well as from the end galleries at all three levels. For up to date information on these plans visit http://www.maryrose.org/museum-closure-november-2015/.

Paul Griffiths, Head of Operations/Managing Director of the Mary Rose Museum comments “we are really excited to welcome our 1 millionth visitor to the Mary Rose Museum – it has been an amazing time since we opened and we have enjoyed so much success which is down to our magnificent team of staff and volunteers”.