In 1916 she was disguised with the identity of a Norwegian vessel named the SS Aud ([ʔaʊ̯d]) in an attempt to carry arms from Germany to Ireland as part of the preparation for the Easter Rising.

Masquerading as SS Aud, Libau set sail from the Baltic port of Lübeck on 9 April 1916, manned by a crew of 22 men under the command of Karl Spindler, bound for the south-west coast of Ireland.

On Good Friday, 21 April, the Libau, whose true identity had been uncovered by the authorities, was approached by three Royal Navy destroyers and attempted to leave the area, but was cornered.

The exhibition also includes a working version of the Mosin–Nagant rifle, large maps of the route taken, an image of Roger Casement on board the submarine that carried him to Ireland, and video taken of the wreck of the Libau as it sits on the sea bed, filmed in the 2000s.

The different calibre of these rifles meant they were not attractive for issuing to German troops, for logistical reasons, and through the misunderstanding of this point they have since been widely described as 'outmoded and out of date.

[citation needed] In 2012, a licensed salvage operation raised Libau's anchors from the wreck site outside the entrance to Cork Harbour at Daunt Rock.