The families of seamen lost when their cargo ship sank suddenly off the Caithness coast could soon make a poignant trip to the scene of the tragedy.
The owners of the bulk cement carrier Cemfjord want to honour the eight crewmen by inviting relatives to the north of Scotland.
The eight are presumed dead after the mysterious sinking at the beginning of the year.
The bulk carrier was last recorded travelling west through the firth on the afternoon of Friday January 2.
But its upturned hull was discovered by a Northlink ferry the following day.
No sign of the crew was found despite a major search, and it is thought the vessel was overwhelmed so suddenly, their bodies may be still on board. Mysteriously, electronic devices that should have alerted the Coastguard to the sinking, did not activate.
The crew were the master Pawel Chruscinski, 43, chief officer Jaroslaw Orlov, 45, chief engineer Roman Tamas, 56, and seamen Henryk Dubanowski, 55, Tomasz Kwiatkowski, 31, Artur Podrazka, 24, and Artur Wegorek, also 24, all from Poland.
The eighth member of the crew was Filipino seaman, Jerome Narvasa, 32.
Tony Redding, a spokesman for the ship’s owners, Brise of Hamburg, said that the company was now looking at staging two memorial services for the crew.
One is expected to be in Poland towards the end of next month, although plans are still being finalised.
Mr Redding said it was also hoped to bring the families to Scotland.
He added: “We are considering the possibility of holding a commemoration service at sea over the site in the summer.”
No decision on whether to raise the boat has been taken, although that it is unlikely.
The vessel is lying on its side in 270ft of water east of the Pentland Skerries. It does not pose a navigational hazard and with extreme currents in the area, sending divers down is regarded as dangerous.
The Marine Accident Investigation Branch (MAIB) is investigating the tragedy.
A remote controlled submarine has examined the wreck and sent back images.