The Cutty Sark, Scottish for a woman's undergarment and in reference to the ship's figurehead, has been permanently moored on Greenwich's waterfront since 1954.

The clipper ship, built in 1869, was a merchant vessel that sailed in the wool trade for Australia as well as the China tea trade. Most notably, the ship achieved a record-breaking wind powered voyage from Australia to England - 72 days in 1885 via Cape Horn.

In 2007, there was a severe fire that damaged both the ship as well as the visitor centre, but April 2012 saw the ship reopened to the public following a complex £50 million conservation project.