The crystal clear Bahamian waters hold a truly special treasure that is sure to be a highlight in any Caribbean visit: Ocean Atlas, the awe-inspiring giant sculpture installed underwater on the shores of the island of New Providence, in The Bahamas. You’ve heard of open-air museums, well, this underwater museum is expanding the possibilities of what a snorkeling or Bahamian tour can hold, as well as helping protect ocean life in the process, and the Bahamian Ocean Atlas is its centerpiece. Marrying art, adventure, sustainability, and environmentalism, the largest underwater statue in the world hold the weight of the ocean and of marine life.

The Story Behind Ocean Atlas

The ambitious idea to create the largest underwater sculpture on Earth is actually a part of an even larger project: the Sir Nicholas Nuttall Coral Reef Sculpture Garden, an art installation, sculpture garden, and man-made reef sanctuary all in one place: the ocean bed off the coast of New Providence island, in the Bahamas. Commissioned by the B.R.E.E.F - the Bahamas Reef Environment Educational Foundation, and developed in 2014, the project seeks to create new, artificial areas for corals to develop and populate, and attract tourists to a spot made to be visited, and away from natural reefs from endangered and overstressed natural reefs.

The sculpture garden features artist Andret John’s Lucayan Faces, a bust based on the Lucayans, Nassau’s indigenous people; Willicey Tynes’ Virtuoso Man, the sculpture of an old man holding onto staff and looking up to the ocean and sky, various reef balls and, of course, Jason deCaires Taylor massive Ocean Atlas. All the sculptures are made with sustainable material, centuries-lasting and ph neutral concrete, to attract natural sea life colonization.

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How Was Ocean Atlas Made?

Jason deCaires Taylor Bahamian Ocean Atlas is a reference to the Greek myth of Atlas, a giant who carries the weight of the world on his shoulders. Playing off of Tynes’ representation of the older generations in Virtuoso Man, Ocean Atlas is modeled off of a Bahamian girl, Camilla, holding up the weight of the ocean - as the younger generations will carry forwards the weight of marine life conservation and respect.

Though deCaires Taylor's works always connect his sculpture with nature and their environment, with a few other underwater projects as well, Ocean Atlas was a daunting scale even for him. Weighing 60 tons and at a height of 5 m, the statue had to be planned out digitally, resized, built separately in several blocks, and assembled underwater, piece by piece. Atop the sculpture, a solar light with a flag aid the navigation in the area.

Ever since the debut of the Sir Nicholas Nuttall Coral Reef Sculpture Garden in 2014, different types of coral, fish, sea urchins, algae, and sea sponges have made the sculpture and reef balls their home, as was intended. Artists Jason deCaires Taylor and Willicey Tynes view that as an integral, and in fact the most important, part of the artwork. Nature will constantly evolve and add texture, shape, and color to the man-made cement base structure, in an eternal, living art collaboration.

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Where And How To Snorkel Out To The Bahamian Ocean Atlas

Snorkeling and scuba diving can be amazing experiences to have in the Caribbean, where the waters are crystalline and the sea life vibrant. However, the pressure from over-tourism has damaged and threatened the natural reefs to a worrying degree. As such, choosing artificial, man-made reef parks like BREEF’s Sir Nicholas Nuttall Coral Reef Sculpture Garden is a way to experience the beauty of the ocean and aid in its protection at the same time.

The Ocean Atlas and the Sir Nicholas Nuttall Coral Reef Sculpture Garden are quite accessible, located in the exciting Clifton Heritage National Park, in Nassau. At the park, signs and guides will point visitors to the snorkeling site, where they can choose which type of tour they’d like and rent gear.

Already on the beach sand, one of Andret John’s Lucayan Faces greets the sea, and the white flag that Ocean Atlas holds up as navigation helps adventurers find their way in the ocean. Visitors can also see the sunken remains of the plane from James Bond’s Never Say Never Again, today also an artificial reef.

Sir Nicholas Nuttall Coral Reef Sculpture is about a 150-yard swim from the shore, and the visibility in the ocean is incredible. It is not a challenging tour, and the 5 meters tall Ocean Atlas can be seen even from the surface (in fact, when the tide is low, the water reflects the shape of the statue, as a beautiful, natural mirror). Novice divers and snorkelers are welcome, but all tour participants must know how to swim, without exceptions. Tours can be booked online.