The Legend of the Shipwreck Shoals Sea Serpent

In the late 19th century, sailors off the New Jersey coast reported uncanny encounters with a monstrous creature haunting the waters near Sandy Hook and beyond. Described as a sinuous beast nearly fifty feet in length, it swam with serpentine undulations, its small bulldog-shaped head rising from the waves to unleash a bone-chilling roar. Witnesses swore it bore two rounded horns above its eyes, lending the apparition a devilish cast. These sightings, recorded by multiple mariners including credible sea captains, quickly became part of local maritime lore.

More than a century later, another specter of the sea would join Jersey Shore legend. In 2012, Hurricane Sandy tore through Seaside Heights, wrenching the Star Jet roller coaster from Casino Pier and plunging it into the Atlantic. Its steel frame lay twisted in the surf, a haunting, modern-day shipwreck. Out of this collision of past and present, the legend has transformed: the sea serpent of old now takes its name from the watery graveyard it patrols — the Shipwreck Shoals Sea Serpent, a creature born of sailor’s dread, storm-tossed steel, and the eternal mystery of the deep

Size: 48”X 58”

Medium: Oil and tinted house paint on repurposed canvas drop cloth.