In June 1877 the Lords Commissioners of the Admiralty received
official reports from the Royal Yacht Osborne, forwarded by
Commander Pearson, regarding the sighting of an unidentified
marine creature seen on the second day of that month off Cape
Vito, Sicily. The documents were passed on to Right Hon. R. A.
Cross, Secretary of State for the Home Department, who in turn
sought the opinion of Frank Buckland in an attempt to identify
whatever it was that had been seen and Buckland further
consulted Professor Richard Owen, Mr. A. D. Bartlett of the
Zoological Gardens, Captain David Gray of the whaling ship
Eclipse and Mr. Henry Lee of the Brighton Aquarium on the
matter. |The Royal Yacht Osborne| Commander Pearson’s report
read: - “I myself saw the fish through a telescope, but at too
great a distance (about 400 yards) to be able to give a detailed
description; but I distinctly saw the seal-shaped head, of
immense size, large flappers, and part of a huge body.”