For Peter Tamm, the passion that launched a thousand ships - and Hamburg's newest museum along the port city's old docks - began with a gift from his mother in 1934. “A 500-gross tonnage coaster from the North Sea-Baltic line,” Tamm said, rattling off specs of that first vessel in his possession. Of course, 500 gross tons was a little too big for a 6-year-old. What Tamm's mother gave him was a 2.5-centimeter model of the cargo ship. “Then came the second, then came the third, until I lost count,” said Tamm. Today he has 36,000. Each and every one built to the same 1:1,250 scale - and that's not all. He also has amassed thousands of photographs of ships and their crews, a flotilla of larger models and a maritime library of more than 100,000 volumes ranging from knot manuals to rare 17th-century ship blueprints. Now, the objects of Tamm's lifelong obsession have a new home. In June, the 80-year-old millionaire opened the International Maritime Museum in a warehouse near Hamburg harbor that was renovated with city funds. Hamburg, where Tamm has lived his entire life, is a fitting home for the museum. The city is Germany's biggest port and one of Europe's busiest. “Without a harbor, Hamburg wouldn't be here at all,” Tamm said. The museum is equal parts education center and showroom. Tamm said he hoped the museum would inspire a new generation to love the sea. “I hope children will wander through the museum and be fascinated by the ships,” Tamm said. “After all these years, I know the joy of finding a passion and following it. Age has its advantages.”
