The 28.1-metre historic schooner Prince Otman is currently undergoing an 18-month restoration at Seven Stars Marina in Pisa, Italy. She was towed from the French commune of Menton and arrived at the shipyard on 8 March 2024.
Work is actively in progress, with Prince Otman's engines already removed and sent to the manufacturer for an overhaul. She is now having her hull stripped of paint in order to inspect the condition of the planking.
Full details of the restoration are undisclosed, but once the rebuild is complete the owner intends to cruise on board Prince Otman with his family.
Commissioned by textile magnate Henry Calvert, Prince Otman (then Mauna Loa) was built by J. Armour & Sons of Fleetwood in 1907. She was designed by William H. Stoba and outfitted in pitch pine, oak, teak and Honduras mahogany, with a copper-lined hull.
Prince Otman was originally skippered by Captain Bob Rawlinson. During World War I, Rawlinson managed to remain captain by enlisting as a lieutenant in the Royal Naval Volunteer Reserve and using Prince Otman to tow barges in the Mersey. He assumed ownership following the death of Henry Calvert.
Prince Otman was also converted into an "armed yacht" – with a machine gun mounted on the foredeck – at the beginning of World War II.
Other historical footnotes include a brief career as a minesweeper and a stint under the ownership of the Duke of Westminster.
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