Panns Bank Mural

Have a stroll over or under the Sunderland Monkwearmouth Bridges and you should notice a large-scale mural. We first saw it from the other side of the River Wear while exploring the Heritage Trail.

This mural was created by local artist Frank Styles, who has a background in fine art and he also painted The Swans on the Salvation Army building nearby. He has also painted Taylor Swift on the steps (A mural, not the singer) at Wembley Stadium.

I am grateful to Frank Styles, who gave me some insights into the Panns Bank Mural. It looks authentic.

At the time of our visit, the building above was covered in scaffolding which my husband (a health and safety guru) found fascinating. We decided to walk down and take a closer look at the mural. This is a Blue Plaque here which gives a bit of detail.

The area gets its name from salt panning, an important commodity created from evaporated seawater that developed into an industry in the 1600s. There is an information board with information. Frank's mural dates to the 19th century when there were brick-built furnaces for glass-making, and wooden sailing ships, which were used to export coal, salt, and glass.

Mr Styles used the existing wall and the roof to create an authentic-looking image.

SP Austin Shipbuilders were known for building wooden sailing cargo ships. Several generations of the family ran the business. They became famous for devising a pontoon, which was sunk below a ship and then raised to lift the ship out of the River.

The mural does require a bit of TLC, let's hope it gets it.