An aerial starboard bow view of the nuclear-powered attack submarine ex-USS NAUTILUS (SSN 571) being towed by the large harbor tugs SKENANDOA (YTB 835), left, and PUSHMATAHA (YTB 830)

Beginning in ancient times, humans sought to operate under the water. The legendary origins of the submarine stretch back to 332 BC with a tale about Alexander the Great being lowered into the sea in a glass barrel to study fish. The submarine concept was thereafter consigned to the backwaters of history for some 1,800 years. This collection presents various submarines: from small and simple to nuclear-powered underwater behemoths.