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Italian Boats of the Adriatic Sea


jack.aubrey

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Italian Boats of the Adriatic Sea

The Brazzera
 

Cherini/126-Brazzera con vela al terzo_zpsrcoxa9nk.jpeg
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Cherini/33-Brazzera_zpsb8kofcxg.jpg
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Cherini/34-Brazzera a 2 alberi_zpshyybxcdc.jpg
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Pictures by http://www.cherini.eu/

The brazzera (called bracera in Croatian) is a traditional Italian cargo sailing vessel which originated in Dalmatia, and was first mentioned in the 16th century. It derives from the Italian expression forza di braccia, meaning “power of hands” (which the Venetians called brazzi) because the vessel was moved by oars.

These vessels were often designed with a lateen rig (also known as a Latin rig) – a triangular sail invented by the Romans. The brazzera was widely used all over the Italian coastal region of Dalmatia, as well as in Istria and the Gulf of Trieste by Italian sailors and fishermen. They were often used to transport wine, olive oil, salt, sand, wood and other supplies. In Istria the brazzera was especially utilized in the Italian cities of Rovigno, Pirano, and Capodistria. In Dalmatia they were widespread all over the entire coast, but most notably in Ragusa and the Venetian island of Brazza.

In the last few decades a conscious effort has been made by Croatian writers and organizations to misappropriate the brazzera and proclaim it a “Croatian” vessel and pretend that it belongs to “Croatian” culture and tradition, once again usurping the heritage of Istria and Dalmatia and forging a new Croatianized revision of history. Croatian nationalist editors have used Wikipedia to create articles depicting the brazzera as a “Croatian” vessel.
In 2006 the Dolphin Dream Society, a Croatian environmentalist organization founded in 2001 in Zagreb, even launched a national campaign known as “The White Project” aimed at conserving traditional “Croatian” shipbuilding and “Croatian” maritime heritage. As part of this project, in 2011 the Dolphin Dream Society constructed a replica or imitation of a traditional 18th century brazzera with a Latin sail, which they named Gospa od mora (“Our Lady of the Sea”).
Today the Dolphin Dream Society operates an education program designed to teach Croats how to continue “their” tradition of crafting brazzera vessels. The Dolphin Dream Society also operates an art program in collusion with the Croatian tourist industry, using stolen heritage, occupied land, and a falsified history to generate tourism and stimulate the Croatian economy.


 

Cherini/19-Brazzera istriana vecchio tipo_zpsks2vd71c.jpg
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Cherini/18-Brazzera veneto dalmata_zps671g8ml7.jpg
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Edited by jack.aubrey
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Italian Boats of the Adriatic Sea
 
The Trabaccolo
 

Cherini/31-Trabaccolo_zpsglcjhtyg.jpg
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Cherini/Piccolo trabaccolo 1910_zpsffc0gq8r.jpg
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Pictures by http://www.cherini.eu/
 
The trabaccolo is a Venetian sailing coaster, built of oak and larch, that dates back to the 15th century, and which became widespread all over the Adriatic. The name derives from the Italian word trabacca, meaning “tent” – a reference to the vessel's sails. 
 
The trabaccolo was used as a cargo vessel, and generally had a crew of about 10 to 20 sailors. In the 18th and 19th centuries many of these vessels carried cannons in order to defend themselves from Muslim and Slavic pirates, and from French and British privateers cruising around the coast of Italy, who frequently attacked and pillaged these ships. 
 
The Maritime Museum of Cesenatico in Emilia-Romagna, Italy has a newly-restored, original and fully functional trabaccolo.

Edited by jack.aubrey
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Italian Boats of the Adriatic Sea

 

The Pielego

 

Cherini/32-Pielego_zpsjajq7zgz.jpg
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The pielego was a smaller version of the trabaccolo and was commonly used in the middle and upper Adriatic. It became even more popular than the trabaccolo because its better flexibility.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by jack.aubrey
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Italian Boats of the Adriatic Sea

 

 

The Topo

 

Cherini/21-Topo%20veneto_zpsjwpgstnc.jpg
y4mIPZEwkjN21nLyL4Xu89TN3qyadblYWMo7rI7C

 

The topo (meaning “mouse”), also known as a mototopo, is a traditional Venetian cargo boat. It is still commonly used today in the Venetian Lagoon. An Istrian version of the boat, known as the topo istriano, was very popular among fishermen in Istria. These boats were traditionally made in Venetian shipyards (called squeri or squeri veneziani) in the Istrian cities of Pirano and Isola d'Istria.

 

The Battana

 

Cherini/Battana_del_Delta_zpso9yowzav.jpg
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The battana is a traditional wooden boat used in the regions of Veneto, Romagna and Istria. The battana originated among the ancient Italian navigators of the Po Valley and Venetian Lagoon. From here it spread to the areas surrounding the cities of Bellaria-Igea Marina, San Mauro Mare and Goro in Romagna, Fano and Senigallia in Marche, and Rovigno in Istria. The battana was very popular along the Adriatic coast because it was cheaper and easier to build.

 

Edited by jack.aubrey
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Jack,

 

thanks for sharing the overview of these boatstypes ....

 

Nils

Current builds

-Lightship Elbe 1

Completed

- Steamship Ergenstrasse ex Laker Corsicana 1918- scale 1:87 scratchbuild

"Zeesboot"  heritage wooden fishing small craft around 1870, POB  clinker scratch build scale 1:24

Pilot Schooner # 5 ELBE  ex Wanderbird, scale 1:50 scratchbuild

Mississippi Sterwheelsteamer built as christmapresent for grandson modified kit build

Chebec "Eagle of Algier" 1753--scale 1:48-POB-(scratchbuild) 

"SS Kaiser Wilhelm der Grosse" four stacker passenger liner of 1897, blue ribbond awarded, 1:144 (scratchbuild)
"HMS Pegasus" , 16 gun sloop, Swan-Class 1776-1777 scale 1:64 from Amati plan 

-"Pamir" 4-mast barque, P-liner, 1:96  (scratchbuild)

-"Gorch Fock 2" German Navy cadet training 3-mast barque, 1:95 (scratchbuild) 

"Heinrich Kayser" heritage Merchant Steamship, 1:96 (scratchbuild)  original was my grandfathers ship

-"Bohuslän" , heritage ,live Swedish museum passenger steamer (Billings kit), 1:50 

"Lorbas", river tug, steam driven for RC, fictive design (scratchbuild), scale appr. 1:32

under restoration / restoration finished 

"Hjejlen" steam paddlewheeler, 1861, Billings Boats rare old kit, scale 1:50

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Hi Jack and thanks for the info.

Do you Know whether the boats in the photo (taken in Kalamata Peloponnese-SW Greece) belong also to Italian marine tradition (hull and rigging).

Thanks

post-617-0-66806000-1476679817.jpg
Edited by Thanasis
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Hi Jack and thanks for the info.
Do you Know whether the boats in the photo (taken in Kalamata Peloponnese-SW Greece) belong also to Italian marine tradition (hull and rigging).
Thanks
 

 

Hi Thanasis,

unfortunately I'm not able to help you . . 

Do you know which kind of boats are them ? If you know their name may be I can help you, otherwise its impossible for me.

Regards,  Jack. 

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Italian Boats of the Adriatic Sea

 

The Paranza

 

Pictures by http://www.cherini.eu/

 

Cherini/05-Paranza marchigiana_zps91cbip0h.jpg
y4mc_SA3jCfFzZtKSbPZTT-kyUEs7I98iCAY_WCm

 

For "Paranza" we mean a italian vessel typical of the Central Adriatic.

 

The Paranza, like all popular boats, was the result of a complete historical evolution and adaptation to structural requirements dictated by both the environment and the usage.

 

Measuring between 7 and 16 meters, the hull, rather short and almost flat bottomed at the midship section, was characterized by a curved and retroflex bow, with the end fashioned as a "cap"; the stern post was slightly inclined and projecting outwards. Another distinctive feature was represented by the profile and the strong structure of the bow, the sheer of its gunwale and the typical succession of the bollards. The bow eyes, always present, were usually applied and carved in relief.

 

The enormous rudder, with a draught far below the keel level also effectively performed the function of a stabilizer. Normally the boat was parked on dry over the beach and was equipped with two side keels or thick blades, intended to facilitate the hauling and to stabilize the hull. With a strong camber, the deck has a relatively modest sheer.

 

Already documented in the Adriatic below the mid-nineteenth century, the Paranza has originally a "Calcese" mast with Latin sail hoisted on a long antenna, made in one single piece. Such equipment was gradually replaced by more manageable lugsail, more traditional in the northern Adriatic coasts.

 

Cherini/Paranza_of_Foletti Olindo_zpsxym5ayht.jpg
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Model by Foletti Olindo (ANVO)

Edited by jack.aubrey
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Thanks for the information! Patrick O'Brian sometimes mentioned the Trabaccolo in his novels, and I wondered what they were!

 

I know. I read all the O'Brian novels and that boat is cited in the 1° one (Master and Commander) and in the 8° (The Ionian Mission). All the 21 noves are wonderful for me . . Rgds, Jack.

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Very interesting and informative

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Italian Boats of the Adriatic Sea

 

The Gaeta Falcata (Gajeta Falkusa)

 

Here follows a collection of pictures of this particular type of Gaeta, native of the island of Lissa, Vis in Croatian.

 

I am gathering some information material with in mind the idea of possibly start building a model of this vessel.

 

In fact it's a bit particular kind of vessel: this Gaeta was used by local fishermen for the sardine fishing. Because the most numerous banks of these kind of fish were at a distance of 80-100 km from their base harbour, the town of Comiso, they had to reach the fishing area under sail. So it was very useful to have the boat sides rather high to keep better the sea, because the sail, as you will see from the pictures, was slightly abundant. Once on the fishing site, instead, it was more useful a boat with low sides to be able to handle more easily the fishing nets.

 

So, the special feature of this boat was that it had removable side panels to be used in case of need and to remove while fishing. Hence the term "falcata".

 

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Edited by jack.aubrey
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MarisStella, one of our sponsors has a kit of this boat. Their kits are of exceptional quality and lots of fun to build. Their site can be found on the homepage

Edited by donrobinson
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Some additional closest details about this boat . . but take a special look at this wonderful sea . . 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited by jack.aubrey
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Jack:

other than the MarisStella model, are you aware of any plans for the boats you have shown/?

thanks

Tom

 

While not specific to the vessels shown in this thread (which are absolutely amazing), there is some fairly detailed description of the lateen rigged Mediterranean vessels (including some very good lines drawings and frame disposition from wrecks)  in Castro, F., N. Fonseca, T. Vacas, and F. Ciciliot. 2008. A Quantitative Look at Mediterranean Lateen- and Square-Rigged Ships (Part 1). International Journal of Nautical Archaeology 37, no. 2: 347–359. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1095-9270.2008.00183.x/abstract. 

 

Information for model making (at least for some of these types) may, perhaps, be available from http://www.grazianogozzo.com/en/barche.htm

Wayne

Neither should a ship rely on one small anchor, nor should life rest on a single hope.
Epictetus

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Thanks Jack. Unfortunately there is nothing to give any clue about those boats. 

I haven't found any similar boat or rigging in Gr marine tradition. Although they both have "penna" (Bermuda) rigging, it differs from the "penna" that was used in Gr. vessels. 

In addition the rudder and the tiller don't have Gr. character...

Many thanks

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Thanks for the pictures, beautiful boat

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Continuation with shipyard images . .
 

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26 images/1654300_826070370751887_366702672_n_zpseacotl9f.jpg
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37 images/20131106-135910_zpscdx5d2j1.jpg
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38 images/20131106-135804_zpsovvhldwp.jpg
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39 images/rebra_zps6ldz7yxj.jpg
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Edited by jack.aubrey
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Beautiful pictures, beautiful ships, and the shipyard is fascinating.  Thanks for doing this Jack.  It give those of us not familiar with these vessels a new perspective.

Mark
"The shipwright is slow, but the wood is patient." - me

Current Build:                                                                                             
Past Builds:
 La Belle Poule 1765 - French Frigate from ANCRE plans - ON HOLD           Triton Cross-Section   

 NRG Hallf Hull Planking Kit                                                                            HMS Sphinx 1775 - Vanguard Models - 1:64               

 

Non-Ship Model:                                                                                         On hold, maybe forever:           

CH-53 Sikorsky - 1:48 - Revell - Completed                                                   Licorne - 1755 from Hahn Plans (Scratch) Version 2.0 (Abandoned)         

         

                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                

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nice pictures, she would be a fun boat to sail in 

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