Louie da fly

Very appropriate. What the Vikings would call Orm - a "worm" (serpent/dragon). At the battle of Svolder King Olaf Trygvasson had a longship called the Serpent (Orm) and another, bigger one called the Ormurin Langi (long serpent). Steven

Interesting thought. To me it looks as if the two at far left and far right are level with each other, both at the front corner of the 'cabin', and the rear one is at the back corner (starboard), but that leaves the question 'where's the one for the port back corner?' Or it could just be that he bunged flags wherever he could fit them. I dunno. Up to you, mate, whatever you feel is right. It's your model, after all. Best wishes, Steven

Keep in mind that these reconstruction drawings are modern interpretations, and I for one can't see any evidence to justify these 'prows'. I like your way of doing it far better. I think the angle of the bowsprit looks far closer to the Anthony Roll depiction than those of the two modern reconstructions. So go with it. The height of the bulwark above the deck - one metre - is what is specified here in Oz for any structure such as a railing on a raised floor/balcony etc. So I think you're on the money there. The triangular 'cabin' surprised me a bit. I would have thought the Anthony Roll shows the walls parallel to the sides of the forecastle. But this is very open to interpretation, and I'm by no means going to say you're wrong in doing it this way. Overall, I'm gobsmacked. You're doing a beautiful job! Steven

Nice. Steven

Yes, unfortunately the Botticelli Judgment of Paris picture (and, for that matter his Punishment of Korah - he just seems to recycled the same ship) is the same - no hatch covers. I read somewhere that the 'pierced' hatch covers made of criss-cross battens were a fairly late development, intended to allow gunsmoke to disperse. But I don't know what evidence that conclusion was based on. The 'removable planks' idea - I think Viking ships used that technique (don't quote me, I'm not sure), and I first saw it on a model of Woodrat's. Unfortunately the information just isn't out there as far as I've been able to find. Contemporary images hardly ever show ships from a helpful angle, and if they do, the hatch is often shown without a cover - oh, look! another one that's no help at all . . . no cover on the hatch. I feel like the guy leaning over it - frustrated. Andrea di Bonauito de Firenze - Conversion of st ranieri Camposanto of Pisa - mid 14th century after a 13th century Giotto original And is this a hatch cover or a coffin? (sorry, I don't know the source) And is this a multi-plank hatch cover? Or something completely different? 1475-85 by 'Master W with the Key' - Netherlands? And how about this one? 1514-1515 Le_combat_de_la Cordeliere by Pierre Choque bnf btv1b525080522 and archaeology so far has been no help as almost all wrecks are missing the upper works. However, the Black Sea wrecks might be a worthwhile source of information, as they seem to be pretty much intact - maybe the hatch covers are intact, too. Might be worth following up. Steven Steven

Good to know, mate. I realised I'd not been in touch and had no idea how things were going with you. I hate it when people just seem to drop off the forum and you never know what's happened to them or if they're still out there. I'm glad you're enjoying reading the build logs (including mine!) - I find a lot of enjoyment simply doing that even when I'm not actively building. You don't have to build to enjoy being on the forum. I'm currently at a bit of a slow patch, not sure what is my best next step. And sometimes I have to just stop and let things percolate mentally before I know what is best to do next. (OTOH sometimes I rush into things without thinking them through enough first, but hey, I never said I had to be consistent). Good to hear from you. Best wishes, Steven

Yes, much better. I don't think the pine is s problem. The windlass looks very nice now. Steven

That appears to be a windlass. And yes, replace the plywood. Here's a photo of the windlass on the full-size reconstruction vessel - https://www.sea.museum/en/whats-on/events/sail-on-duyfken I hope that helps. Steven

Going to be interesting. Steven

Waldemar is correct. Oak planking was used where a strong timber was structurally preferable; the rest of the planking was of pine. Mark, at the moment I probably have enough oak to get me by, so I won't ask you to go to all that trouble. But I might get back in touch with you later. We'll see how it goes . . . Steven

So many things. A "galleass" from the Anthony Roll (not a Mediterranean style oared galleass at all - a sort of low version of a galleon) Brunel's Great Britain, a reconstruction from a graffito in Hagia Sofia cathedral in Istanbul, the Grace Dieu of Henry V (not to be confused with Henry VIII's Henry Grace a Dieu), HMS Captain (which turned turtle and sank in a gentle squall because of her bad design, taking the crew - and the designer - with her), HMS Thunder Child from H.G. Wells's War of the Worlds, HMS Sophie from Master and Commander, a Maltese luzzu, perhaps an Australian pearling lugger, a French pre-dreadnought, an Indonesian fishing boat, a galleon from 1545, one of the earliest carracks from a church pew-end in England from 1415, an early Mediterranean carrack from before the shape had been "tied down", another Mediterranean mediaeval merchant ship . . . the list is endless. And perhaps the NSEA Protector from Galaxy Quest. And of course the Liberator from Blake's Seven. Steven

How about one of the more complex ones? These are all from a map of Normandy from 1545. I've had the first one on my bucket list for years. Steven

You've done very well with her. Turned out beautifully. So - what's next? Steven

Hi Tarbrush, just wondering how it's all going. Best wishes, Steven