Set within the old 19th-century Protestant chapel, the Sirius Museum is dedicated to its namesake: a British navy ship that led the First Fleet and fell victim to the treacherous waters off Norfolk Island in 1790.

Inside the museum, you can lose yourself in the seafaring saga of the Sirius, from its role in transporting European convicts to Australia, to its ill-fated attempt to deliver stores to Norfolk Island’s first penal settlement. Exhibits include anchors, cannons and other items from the vessel, most of which lay on the ocean floor for more than 170 years before they were salvaged from the wreck.

The actual wreck site is located on the reef near Slaughter Bay, just a stone’s throw from the museum.