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The picture below is used on many websites discussing Mathew Baker and the Revenge of 1570. Can anyone point me to the original source for the picture? THANKS!

Jay - Not sure if this will help, but here is how Humphreys describes the floors and futtocks in his 6/19/1794 list to the War Department: Floor & raising timbers of good white oak sided 12 ½ inches moulded at the floor surmark 15 inches & in the throat from the top of the deadwood 21 inches to be bolted through the keel with one & 3/8 inch bolts. Those bolts should be put as near the side as possible of the keel in order to give room on the other side for the keelson bolts, one floor bolted near the larboard side of the keel, the other on the starboard side. The timber all to be double bolted from the foremast to within 10 feet of the mizzen mast. Lower futhooks of live oak sided 12 inches in the midships & something smaller at the fore & aft ends of the ship to butt against the side of the deadwood amidships to have cross chocks fayed on the deadwood & their heels to be bolted through the keelson & keel with 1 1/8 inch bolts. Middle & upper futhooks & top timbers Sided 11 ½ inches. Top timbers moulded a the gun whale 7 inches at the port sill 9 inches all the other timber sized by diminishing line from the port sill to the floor surmark which is 15 inches. Timbers framed floor timbers, lower futhook, middle & upper and top timbers all to be framed in frames and bolted with 3 bolts 1 ½ inch square in each scarph except the lower futhooks and floor which should have 1 ¼ inch bolts the timber must be pieced fair & true for if they are not out of winding it will be impossible to level the timber with any truth. He describes the gunports thusly (dimensions are feet-inches): Height of port sills of the quarter deck & forecastle 1 – 10 Height of ports on gundecks 2 – 4 In the clear up & down 2 – 11 Fore and aft 3 – 5 Distance between ports 7 – 5 After port aft side before the rabbet of post 6 – 4 Fifteen ports on each side besides the bridle or bow port, if any The attachment describes the alterations in the frames to accommodate the gun ports. 1795-11-16 WD to Constr CIRCULAR_ZXA06.138-143.pdf

Don - it is called The Ships of Abel Tasman by Ab Hoving and Cor Emke. Published in 2000, ISBN 9789065500878. I could not find any on Amazon, but I did find one on Abe Books http://www.abebooks.com/servlet/BookDetailsPL?bi=14953170974&searchurl=tn%3DThe+ships+of+Abel+Tasman+With+an+introduction+by+Peter+Sigmond%26an%3DHOVING%2C+Ab+ I also find it on the publisher's website here: http://www.verloren.nl/boeken/2086/253/168/maritiem-en-waterstaat/the-ships-of-abel-tasman Hope that helps!

Matti - Have you looked at 17th Century Dutch Merchant Ships: Text, Photos and Plans for the Ship Modeler by Ab Hoving (2014). SeaWatch Books, Florence, OR, 152 pp. http://www.seawatchbooks.com/114003? It is reviewed here (with pictures): http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/8853-17th-century-dutch-merchant-ships/?p=262024 It is a wonderful reference, primarily 17th century, but may provide you with some backwards looking ideas. The plans include the following: Seagoing Vessels: Pinas Witsen – scale 1-96 – 4 sheets of plans. Fluit “Langewijk” – scale 1-96 – 3 sheets of plans. Fluit “Zeehaen” (Able Tasman) – scale 1-96 – 3 sheets of plans. Fluit “Roode Leeuw” – scale 1-96 – 2 sheets of plans. Cat “Peacock” – scale 1-96 – 1 sheet of plans. Coastal Trade: Boyer 86ft – scale 1-48 – 3 sheets of plans. Galliot – scale 1-48 – 2 sheets of plans. Inshore: The Narrow- & Wide-ship – scale 1-48 – 2 sheets of plans. Kaag – scale- 1-48 – 1 sheet of plans. Fishermen as Traders: Buss 1598 – scale 1-96 – 1 sheets of plans. Hooker – scale 1-96 – 1 sheets of plans. Pink – scale 1-48 – 1 sheet of plans.

That wouldn't necessarily be that large a volume - if in bags, would take up a total of about 130 cubic meters. Sounds like a huge volume, but if packed in bags around other barrels &c. it isn't so bad. If in barrels, well, then it is a bigger space hog. A flour barrel held about 196 pounds in the early 19th century, so to store 70 tons (assuming a long ton of 2,240 pounds), then would require some 800 barrels spread across the 2 ships. That is a LOT of barrels!

I like the looks of that, Matti. Here is something to mull over when looking at tonnage figures from modern writers. The size of the Hanseatic and Dutch ships which plied the Baltic was also for a long time expressed by estimates of how much grain they could carry. The Hanseatic grain measure, the last, was a volumetric unit which had an equivalent in pounds, like the early English ton. Last meant at first the load of a four-wheeled wagon. When it was somewhat more precisely defined, the standards set varied from port to port and within the same port for different commodities. In Danzig, for example, 3 lasts of herring equaled 4 lasts of rye, and the last of rye, equal to 3.105 cu. m. or 2,257 kg. (4,975 lbs.), was used to rate ships. At Hamburg in the seventeenth century the grain last was 3.159 cu. m. (111.5 cu. ft.), but for rating ships there was a special Schiffslast equal to 2,000 Hamburg pounds (1,935 kg. 4,266.9 lbs. Eng.). At Amsterdam, grain was measured using the Kornlast of Danzig of 3.105 cu. m. or 109.6 cu. ft. but ships were rated according to the weight they could carry in a Schiffslasten of 2,000 Amsterdam pounds (1,976kg. or 4,356.3 lbs.). This situation seems to be the result of a shift away from an ambivalent measure, which expressed a rough equivalence of volume with weight, towards two distinct measures: the Kornlast which measured volume and the Schiffslast which told how much a vessel could carry without submerging its loadline excessively. Generalizing roughly, we can say that the Hanseatic and Dutch Schififslast equalled about 4,480 lbs. (2,032 kg.) and that the Kornlast became by the seventeenth century a measure of volume equal to about 112 cu.. ft. (3.2 cu.. M.). A ship's capacity in the two lasts was the same when the specific gravity of the cargo was roughly .63. SOURCE: Lane, F. C., 1964: Tonnages, Medieval and Modern. The Economic History Review, 17, 213–233, doi:10.2307/2593003. http://www.jstor.org/stable/2593003(Accessed January 25, 2015).

If one considers that the average British seaman was, until the middle of the 19th century, rather poorly paid (in earlier times, not paid until he was released from the ship, which may have been years), often poorly equipped when enlisted, and had to acquire apparel through the ships slops locker (his pay would be reduced based on the slops received), there was a decided self interest in protecting the footwear - not wearing it out by wearing the shoes/boots at all times. In particularly colder climates, there was an obvious need to wear something. In the rigging, however, there are so many accounts (logs, diaries, tales and so on) from contemporary sources that there was a decided preference for bare feet when aloft for better footing and grip. Remember, period shoes/boots that the sailor may have been issued were far from what we have today.

So, to summarize key data thus far, I present this lovely chronological table. Still a work in progress so no firm conclusions - please let me know if I have missed something germane (which is highly probable....)

For ships of the 16th century, it was not a common practice to determine the displacement before the vessel was launched. Indeed, it was not common to determine displacement after launch. The common system of measurement used provided an estimate of the burthen or capacity based on volume - tuns (volumetric) was the general unit of measure. The Dutch and Swedes were somewhat ahead of others in utilizing science to determine the displacement (tons or tonnes - a weight based on volume of water displaced), and in the late 16th century Mathew Baker was apparently using similar methods for his designs, but the calculation of displacement did not come into common practice in most countries until the 18th century. For a very thorough discussion, see Ferreiro, L., 2007: Ships and science the birth of naval architecture in the scientific revolution, 1600-1800. MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass., http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&AN=173439(Accessed February 8, 2015). If you do not have the book, his thesis that the book is based upon can be found at Ferreiro, L., 2004: Down from the mountain : the birth of naval architecture in the scientific revolution, 1600-1800. University of London, 550 pp. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.411610(Accessed March 2, 2015). If you can read it, there is a Dutch treatise that may be worth accessing from 1671 - Witsen, N., 1671: Aeloude en hedendaegsche scheeps-bouw en bestier. t’ Amsterdam : By Casparus Commelijn, Broer en Jan Appelaer, Boeck-verkoopers, 813 pp. http://archive.org/details/gri_33125008247716(Accessed March 9, 2015).

Here's the link tot he 1797 Constellation info on Wiki - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/USS_Constellation_%281797%29 There are some paintings (none contemporary that I could see) available at http://www.navsource.org/archives/09/46/46020.htm The first 4 would be of the original frigate while the rest are of the new one built 1854. I suspect that there were hammock rails of some sort - you may be able to glean some information from the Constitution history. Note that the Navy History and Heritage Command did the miserable trick of redesigning their website late last year and most links to it do not work. It is also very difficult to find anything there now.

Welcome, kind sir! As you note, the Constellation in Baltimore is a mid-19th century replacement of the original. You may want to look into a couple of rather detailed volumes out there that discuss her history - may I suggest the following for a starting point for your research? Chapelle, H. I., and L. D. Polland, 1970: The Constellation Question. Smithsonian Institution Press, Washington. Ferguson, E. S., 1956: Truxtun of the Constellation; the life of Commodore Thomas Truxtun, U.S. Navy, 1755-1822. Johns Hopkins Press, Baltimore, 322 p. pp. http://catalog.hathitrust.org/Record/000334060(Accessed September 14, 2014). Toll, I. W., 2006: Six Frigates: The Epic History of the Founding of the U.S. Navy. 1ST edition. W. W. Norton, New York, 560 pp. ISBN 9780393058475 http://www.navsea.navy.mil/nswc/carderock/pub/cnsm/faq/faq_13.aspx

Steve (assuming that is the name) - How'd I get here? I started building wooden ship models just over 3 years ago (wow - has it been that long?), and started to gather books and downloadable documents as part of my learning. I found that the research process itself was very satisfying for me - goes back to my education in Marine Biology, I guess - and took on a life of its own. I have two major research endeavors I am engaged in at the moment - one related to the early US Navy (drawing heavily on the Papers of the War Department website – the wife is doing all the transcription) and the other around the pre-determination of waterlines (which led to many of the archeological references). For Mesopotamia, you could start with the thesis listed above and then move through the references cited. I am not familiar with the era (was looking at it for a different purpose) but, in general, a thesis will provide some solid leads. As for Egyptian vessels, there is some better information out there (based on a quick look) that may also guide you along the right path. Here are a couple for starters. Belov, A., 2014: A New Type of Construction Evidenced by Ship 17 of Thonis-Heracleion. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, 43, 314–329, doi:10.1111/1095-9270.12060. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/1095-9270.12060/abstract(Accessed March 5, 2015). Geanette, M., 1983: Mast Step and Keelson: The Early Development of a Shipbuilding Technology. Texas A&M University, http://nautarch.tamu.edu/Theses/pdf-files/Geannette-MA1983.pdf(Accessed March 19, 2015). Monroe, C., 1990: The Boatbuilding Industry of New Kingdom Egypt. Texas A&M University, 151 pp. http://nautarch.tamu.edu/Theses/pdf-files/Monroe-MA1990.pdf(Accessed March 18, 2015). Belov, in particular, has a number of reports on academia.edu that you may find interesting (http://cesras.academia.edu/AlexandreBelov )

Incidentally - don't rule out Mesopotamia! Makela, T. T., 2002: Ships and Shipbuilding in Mesopotamia (CA. 3000-2000 B.C.). Texas A&M University, http://nautarch.tamu.edu/Theses/pdf-files/Makela-MA2002.pdf(Accessed March 18, 2015).

Greetings, kindly sir, and welcome aboard! The quest you are embarking upon may take you down some very interesting paths, with many side journeys possible! The information you seek is, to varying degrees, out there, but may not be always in an obvious place! Before I offer a few introductory readings, let me offer some quick tips for your search. Google Books can be a great tool when used wisely. Many texts from the 16th century onward can be found by searching the title, author or combinations thereof. Archive.org and Hathitrust.org are also amazing repositories. Mariner's Mirror (http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rmir20/current#.VQn4sOFQDcQ ), Journal for Maritime Research (http://www.tandfonline.com/toc/rmar20/current#.VQn45uFQDcQ ) and American Neptune (only a few issues available on-line at http://phillipslibrarycollections.pem.org/cdm/landingpage/collection/p15928coll3 ), among other journals, can lead you to more resources. Maritime Archeology journals are extremely valuable for insights into the construction and materials of older vessels. Check out the collection of Theses at schools such as Texas A&M http://nautarch.tamu.edu/Also see the Nautical Archaeology Reading List at http://nauticalarch.org/ina_quarterly/introduction Academia.edu has an abundance of articles on related topics. Membership is free. Some recommendations for you: Ferreiro, L., 2007: Ships and science the birth of naval architecture in the scientific revolution, 1600-1800. MIT Press, Cambridge, Mass., http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&scope=site&db=nlebk&db=nlabk&AN=173439 Fincham, J., 1821: An Introductory Outline of the Practice of Ship-building, &c. &c. William Woodward, 348 pp. http://books.google.com/books?id=pKZWAAAAcAAJ Barker, R., 1985: Fragments From The Pepysian Library. Revista da Universidade de Coimbra, XXXII, 161–178. http://home.clara.net/rabarker/Fragments83txt.htm ——, 1988: “Many May Peruse Us”: Ribbands, Moulds and Dodels in the Dockyards. Revista da Universidade de Coimbra, XXXIV, 539–559. http://home.clara.net/rabarker/sagres87mmpu-txt.htm. Batchvarov, K. N., 2002: The framing of seventeenth-century men-of-war in England and other northern European countries /. Texas A & M University, http://nautarch.tamu.edu/anth/abstracts/batchvarov.html. Bellamy, M., 1997: Danish naval administration and shipbuilding in the reign of Christian IV (1596-1648). University of Glasgow, 489 pp. http://theses.gla.ac.uk/1383/1/1997bellamyphd.pdf(Accessed March 2, 2015). Falconer, W., 1784: An universal dictionary of the marine: or, A copious explanation of the technical terms and phrases employed in the construction, equipment, furniture, machinery, movements, and military operations of a ship. 420 pp. https://archive.org/details/universaldiction00falc. Harpster, M., 2010: Designing the 11th-century-AD vessel from Serçe Limanı, Turkey. International Journal of Nautical Archaeology, 39, 44–55, doi:10.1111/j.1095-9270.2009.00227.x. http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1095-9270.2009.00227.x/abstract(Accessed February 16, 2015). Loewen, B., and M. Delhaye, 2006: Oak growing, hull design and framing style. The Cavalaire-sur-Mer wreck, c. 1479. Connected by the Sea. Proceedings of the Tenth ISBSA, Roskilde 2003, L. Blue, F. Hocker, and A. Englert, Eds., Oxbow, Oxford, 99–104 https://www.academia.edu/6921643/Oak_growing_hull_design_and_framing_style._The_Cavalaire-sur-Mer_wreck_c._1479(Accessed March 2, 2015). Steel, D., 1805: The shipwright’s vade-mecum [by D. Steel]. 377 pp. http://archive.org/details/shipwrightsvade00steegoog(Accessed September 1, 2014). Sutherland, W., 1711: The ship-builders assistant : or, some essays towards compleating the art of marine architecture. printed for Mount, Bell, and Smith, London, 165 p., [15] leaves of plates (some folded) : ill. ; 22 cm. pp. http://echo.mpiwg-berlin.mpg.de/MPIWG:12RWTM5U. Sutherland, William, 1748: Marine Architecture: or, the Ship-Builder’s Assistant: containing directions for carrying on a ship, from the first laying of the keel, to her actual going to sea, etc. [With a folding plate.]. W. & J. Mount & T. Page, 106 pp. https://books.google.com/books?id=57BWAAAAcAAJ There are also many modern era books that contain portions of this information. For example, Goodwin, P., 1987: The construction and fitting of the English man of war, 1650-1850. Naval Institute Press, Annapolis, Md, 276 pp. ISBN 0870210165 Lavery, B., 1983: The Ship of the Line: Development of the Battlefleet, 1650-1850, Volume I. Conway Maritime Press, London. ISBN 9780851772523 ——, 1986: The Ship of the Line: Design, Construction and Fittings, Volume II. Conway Maritime Press, London, ISBN 9780851772875. Pâris, E., 2013: “Selected Plates from Souvenirs de Marine” by James Hitchcock. J. Hitchcock, Ed. CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform, https://www.createspace.com/4276148?ref=1147694&utm_id=6026(Accessed March 15, 2015). Yedlinsky, A., 2014: Scantlings of Royal Navy Ships 1719-1805. Sea Watch Books, 271 pp. ISBN 9780983753292 There are so many more. If there is a more specific era or topic you would like soe guidance toward please feel free to let me know, and HAVE FUN!

Continuing on my quest, Ferreiro provides the following information (source: page 340-341 in Ferreiro, L., 2004: Down from the mountain : the birth of naval architecture in the scientific revolution, 1600-1800. University of London, 550 pp. http://ethos.bl.uk/OrderDetails.do?uin=uk.bl.ethos.411610).: In Venice, the Capitulare navium (Maritime statutes) of 1255 established load waterlines according to the age of the ship, using an iron cross fixed to the hull. One hundred years later, the Republic of Genoa adopted a statute that established freeboards for different routes based on sea conditions; higher for the open waters of the Bay of Biscay, lower for the protected Mediterranean. There was a clear appreciation for the practical requirements of weight control, based on the expected weather and seas conditions and state of the ship, even if there were no means of predicting those requirements during its construction. The actual load waterlines were not marked on the hull, and were rarely marked on drawings in ship manuscripts prior to about 1650, however, most of Matthew Baker's hull elevations in his manuscript Fragments of Ancient English Shipwrightry mark the "swimming line", though there is no text or calculation to support it. So, then, what we have to work from is that there was an awareness in the 13th century of the importance of an identified load waterline, if not a method to determine it during construction. This would align well with the mass production method of Venetian construction (which is a fascinating topic to delve into - quite a bit of discussion around the concept of "Whole-Moulding" and similarity between the Mediterranean and European approaches, but I digress...) and somewhat standardized proportions for the rising, narrowing and hauling down, for example. We also see, then, that Mathew Baker (and others) had some ability to pre-determine the "swimming line" during the 16th century. Richard Barker (1988 - “Many May Peruse Us”: Ribbands, Moulds and Dodels in the Dockyards. Revista da Universidade de Coimbra, XXXIV, 539–559. http://home.clara.net/rabarker/sagres87mmpu-txt.htm). notes that William Bourne ( Treasure for Travelers, 1578) describes the use of models, to scale to measure the displacement of the corresponding ship. He describes waterplanes and load-marks in the process. This may have been purely theoretical on Bourne's part when drafted in 1572 (it was published in 1578). So - I am slowly narrowing the timeframe where initial calculations may have been used to pre-determine the "swimming line" and "draught of water" - but not there yet! On to more French, Dutch and Italian research works!

Very nice, Tony.

The books by Davis, while a bit older, are exceptional reference works to have on hand. If you can, you may also want to get a copy of Neophyte Shipmodeller's Jackstay by George Campbell.

Marc - I have found Academia.edu to be a fantastic resource for a wide array of published and unpublished information. I may go there to access a single paper I was looking for and find myself following numerous tangents and other trails to even more that I may not have known I was seeking! I am not familiar with RHINO or Photosynth, but definitely will be checking both out.

I have been using Collectorz (see topic in this forum) for a few years now to track and manage my collection of books (which is extensive). I have found it less practical, however, to manage my large and ever expanding collection of downloaded journal articles, old books in PDF and so on. I have tried a couple of different programs, some of which were much more intuitive and easy to use than others, and found that Zotero is an extremely easy to learn, flexible, and quick way to organize and track my collection. https://www.zotero.org/ Zotero utomatically senses content in your web browser, allowing you to add it to your personal library with a single click. Whether you're searching for journal article from JSTOR, a news story from the New York Times, or a book from your university library catalog, Zotero has you covered with support for thousands of sites. It also will add information from Google Books, archive.org and many more. When available, it will automatically download the file as an attachment to the entry. You can also download the file to your computer and then link it to the entry in Zotero. You can add PDFs, images, audio and video files, snapshots of web pages, and really anything else. Zotero automatically indexes the full-text content of your library, enabling you to find exactly what you're looking for with just a few keystrokes. Whether you need to create footnotes, endnotes, in-text citations, or bibliographies, Zotero will do all the dirty work for you, leaving you free to focus on your writing. Create citations in Word and OpenOffice without ever leaving your word processor and add references to an email, a Google Doc, or some other editor simply by dragging one or more references out of Zotero. There are well over 200 specific citation formats available through their website that can be added to your program. The program can be downloaded as a stand-alone version on your computer (which I use) or as a Firefox (Mozilla) add-on. Zotero is a project of the Roy Rosenzweig Center for History and New Media, and was initially funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, the Institute of Museum and Library Services, and the Alfred P. Sloan Foundation.

Thanks, Marc - I do have the 3 volumes by Emile van Konijnenburg you mention. They remain available on archive.org. Direct links are: Vol. 1 - Shipbuilding from its Beginnings - Types of Vessels https://archive.org/details/shipbuildingfrom01konijne Vol. 2 - Shipbuilding from its Beginnings - Plans of Vessels https://archive.org/details/shipbuildingfrom02koni Vol. 3 - Shipbuilding from its Beginnings - Drawings of Vessels https://archive.org/details/shipbuildingfrom03koni Will certainly look into the German works you mention.

Phil - I have come across secondary sources that indicate there were some calculations of displacement done as early as ~1634 in Britain (see, for example, the contract for HMS Sovereign of the Seas (later Royal Sovereign), pages xcii-xcv in The Autobiography of Phineas Pett, ed. by W. G. Perrin (1918) available at http://archive.org/details/autobiographyofp00pettuoft) where both a "draught of water" (fully loaded WL) of 21' 3" and a "swimming line" (light WL) of 18' 9" are provided (these did change during development of the ship). In the same year, two of Phineas Pett's relatives (his son and nephew, both named Peter) were building ships in Woolwich and Deptford, and providing accurate estimates of their draft and freeboard to gunports, well before launch. See Trinity House of Deptford Transactions, 1609-35 London Record Society 19 pages 135 & 142 for details ( http://www.british-history.ac.uk/london-record-soc/vol19 ). While these ships indicate that there was an ability, they are more the exception than the rule. By the 1600's, the importance of designing ships of war such that the lower gunports had adequate freeboard when the ship was fully loaded was a key consideration. From several centuries earlier, in Venice, the Capitulare navium (Maritime statutes) of 1255, established load waterlines according to the age of the ship, using an iron cross fixed to the hull. The Republic of Genoa (100 years later) adopted a statute that established freeboards for different routes based on sea conditions; higher for the open waters of the Bay of Biscay, lower for the protected Mediterranean (from Ferreiro, Down from the Mountain, 2004).

I can see I have more books to add to my library - thank you both for those links!

Thank you, Phil. Will need to go back and check those out (was not an area I was looking into at the time!) I am also one of the weird types that, while using modern reference works extensively, I still try when possible to go back to the sources they cite to verify information. Throw back to my days as a Marine Biologist, I guess!

Nicolaas or Nicolaes Witsen (1641 –1717) was a Dutch statesman who was mayor of Amsterdam thirteen times, between 1682-1706. In 1693 he became administrator of the VOC. In 1689 he was extraordinary-ambassador to the English court, and became Fellow of the Royal Society. In his free time he was cartographer, maritime writer, and an authority on shipbuilding. His books on the subject are important sources on Dutch shipbuilding in the 17th century. He is most know for his 1671 book Aeloude and hedendaegsche Scheepsbouw en Bestier. Regrettably, I do NOT read Dutch - I wish I could! I have come across several scanned versions of his book online. This first one is down loadable as a PDF: https://archive.org/details/gri_33125008247716 It may also be read on-line here (this may be an annotated version as the pagination differs from that above): http://www.dbnl.org/tekst/wits008arch01_01/ A review of this book was published in the Philosophical Transactions of the Royal Society, London, 1671, pp 3006-3012. http://rstl.royalsocietypublishing.org/content/6/69-80/3006 Here is the text of that review: The Ingenious and Industrious Author of this Work having considered with himself, that his Country-men, though so flourishing in Navigation and Naval Architecture, had yet published nothing of that subject, except what De Heer Tjassens had written of the Politie of Shipping, did resolve with himself to break that silence, and to communicate unto the World a History both of the Ancient and Modern way of Building, Equipping, and Governing of Ships; which design having been by him put in execution in this Book, he therein largely treateth not only of the Manner of the Naval Architecture used by the Greeks and Romans, together with their Naval Exercises, Battles, Discipline, Laws and Customs; but also of the Method and Way used at this day both in his own Country, England, France, and the Indies, together with the difference there is between the Manner of Building Ships, practised by Others, from that of the Dutch, and particularly of the Indian way of Equipping their Ships, and the manner of Building Galleys: All inriched with an ample Seamans Dictionary, and a great number of Illustrating Diagrams. The whole Work is divided into Two main Parts; The First contains XIX Chapters; whereof, 1. Giveth an account of the first Builders of Ships, and in general of the Building of the Antients, both before and after the Deluge; where the Author particularly discourseth of Noah's Ark; of divers Ships found deep under ground; of the structure of the Ship Argo; of the Navigation of the Phenicians, Rhodians, Corinthians, Ægyptians, Tyrians, Cretians, &c. 2. Delivers the Way of the Naval Architecture of the Greeks and Romans, both for War and Commerce, together with the manner of Equipping their Ships row'd with Oars, both of single and manifold ranks, and the sitting of the Rowers: Where he treats of the Biremis Pistrix; the Biremis Vallata Oneraria Cerealis Siracusia; the Biremis and Tiremis turrita; the Triremis vallata, &c. 3. Discourseth of several sorts of the Ancients Structure of Ships, and chiefly of the great Vessels built by Philopater and Hiero, the pompous make of both which is here represented; as also of the numerousness and launching of their Ships. 4. Enumerateth divers un-common Observables in Ships both of Ancient and Later times, as in Noah's Ark, the Ships of Argo, Theoris, Paralon, Salamine, Magellan, Drake, &c. To which he adds that Noble Fregat built in England A. 1637, called the Soverain, of 1637 Tuns, having a keel that was to be drawn by 28 oxen and 4 horses; as also a Description of the Spanish Armada of 1588, called the Invincible; not forgeting the Bucentoro of the Venetians; nor the Mageleza of the Suedes, a Man of war, appearing at Sea about 100 years since, and having sides of that thickness, that all bullets stuck within her boards. In this Chapter is inserted a Relation of a Ship found in the time of Pius II. in the Numidian Sea, 12 fathoms under water, 30 foot long and of a proportionable breadth, built of Cyprus and Larix wood, and reduced to that hardness, that it would hardly burn; as it was also very hard to cut: No signs in it of any rottenness any where; its deck cover'd with paper, linnen and leaden plates, fastned with guilt nails, as also were the boards; the whole ship so close, that not a drop of water was found soaked through into any close room. The Author concludeth it to have lain there about 1400 years. 5. Relateth, what great Fleets were anciently set out, and what far voyages undertaken: where he taketh particular notice of the Expedition of the Argonautes, of Xerxes, of Alexander M, of Rome, and Cartage, of the Saxons, Britons, &c. 6. Describeth what the Antients observed in Building their Ships, and how they closed, rigged and beautified them; where occur several relations of divers ways of cementing, caulking, pitching; and defending ships from rottenness and worms; of which I shall only mention, what occasionally he alledgeth of a certain cement now used by the Indians, made of finely beaten reeds, chalk, and oyl, with which their Ships are over-laid to keep them from rotting. 7. Rehearseth the State of Naval Architecture after the Ruine of the Roman Empire; especially amongst the Scyhians, and Saracens, invading Italy, Spain, France, &c; together with the endeavors of the Romans under Justinian and others, to defend themselves against those Barbarians: Not omitting, what was done by the Danes, Huns, English, Saxons, and particularly by that Brave and Vigilant King Edgar, who maintained a Fleet of 3600 sail, which he divided into three Squadrons, called the Eastern, Western and Northern, sailing in them himself every year round about England and Scotland. To this he annexeth, at what time Shipping was at the lowest ebb, and how it began to be restored by some Kings of Portugal, the Frieslanders, and his Countrymen in general, about 200 years since. 8. Giveth an ample and very particular account of the present way of Building Ships, both for War and Trade, in Holland. Where are represented not only the Parts of a Ship in their several Figures, together with their Names, and Uses; but also a whole Ship, perfectly rigg'd, and on it the parts marked, with reference to the annexed Discourse, wherein they are described. 9. Contains a particular Description of the Proportions of all the Parts of a Dutch ship, and the Measures of some peculiar sorts of Vessels of that Country: Where he instanceth in several Ships of different lengths, as of 134, 160, 150, 140, 125, 130, feet long; as also in a Frigot, 130 feet long; and assigneth the measures and proportions of the respective parts thereof; Adding withall an account of divers Frigots and other Ships, there built by some of their most famous Shipwrigths, to the number of Twenty six. 10. Declareth the Make and Weight of all sorts of Ankers, and the bigness and weight of Cables in general, and in particular of certain Ships built there; as also the measures and proportions of Masts, and Sails, of divers Vessels, and how Sails may be best ordered to take in most wind, mathematically shown: Where Occasion is taken to insert considerable remarks about the several sorts of Hemp, and the best way of working Cables, and the care to be had in the manner of tarring them, and in the degree of heating the tar for that purpose, &c. 11. Delivers the Method of conjoyning the parts of a Ship one after another, used by Dutch Ship wrights; together with a representation of a Ship upon the Stocks, and their manner of Launching ships: Adding their way of redressing a ship that lieth on her side, as well as of laying her on her side for re-pairing or cleansing; and intimating also, that amongst them a ship 180 or 185 feet long, can conveniently be built up, by 50 men, in 5 months; and that the charges of building a ship, 165 feet long, 43 feet broad, and 31 feet high, built of the best timber, amounts to 74152 gilders; besides its ironwork, which together with its rigging comes to 19483 gilders more, without the warlick equipage: Judging withall, that such a ship, well built and kept with care, may last 20, 30, 40, to 50 years; mentioning also, that he had seen a certain English vessel, of 70 years old, and not yet altogether useless. 12. Speaks of the measures and proportions of several other Sea-vessels, that are of a structure and use different from that of the former; such as are Flutes, Green-land-vessels for Whale-fishing, Advice-yachts, Boyars, Galliots, Fire-ships, Pinks, Busses, &c. 13. Treats of other sorts of Vessels, as Coasters, Yachts, Challoups, Lighters, Boats, Skiffs, Double-bottom'd Vessels, ships rising without being unladen, and such as move, under water, or against the stream, and especially of a Vessel used at Amsterdam, whereby in one day may be fetch'd up 50 or 60 boats of mud, performed by the means of a big wheel and large spoons. In the same Chapter, instructions are given concerning the Choice of Ship-Timber; where are to be found many necessary and very useful Observations and Directions relating to the purpose in hand, and a particular commendation of the English and Irish Oak for ships. To all which is added an Enumeration of all sorts of Tools and Engins requisite for this kind of building. 14. Considers the Structure of Galleys and Galleasses in particular, and what is peculiar in them and different from other ships; taking also notice in brief of Galeasses, Brigantines, Feluccas, &c. 15. Discourseth of the Proportions observed by the English and French in the building of their respective ships: Where he taketh special notice of Four Frigats of four distinct rates; exhibiting and describing there as they are to be found in the Duke of Northumberland, Robert Dudley, his Arcano del Mare, printed at Florence; and concluding this Chapter with a description of the Frigat called the Royal Charles, (some years since fallen into Dutch hands,) and an Encomium of the English Orders at Sea. 16. Maketh a Narrative of the Indian way of framing ships: Where first of all occur the Canoe's and their Structure out of one only Tree, hollow'd by burning. Next, the Chinese Yonks of Nankin (a sort of flat bottom'd Boats,) and other Vessels of the same Country; among which those are described, that are as big as little Islands, and hold many houses and families, floating upon the waters, and going up and down through all the parts of China that have the conveniency of navigable rivers: To which is added a description of a Royal Chinese boat, of a Serpentin shape, sent to receive the Dutch Ambassadors in those parts. Then the ships of Malabar, Ternate, Sumatra, Japan, Terra del Fuego, (in which last are made very artificial boats of the Barks of the thickest Trees, as in Malabar some are made of large Canes, called Bambu Moreover of Borneo and Calecut. After this, the Author returns to China, and relateth, that ships are found there, which upon rollers sail over Land; and giveth a large account of the vast number of ships; both warlike and markantile, maintained in that Empire; together with the odd Architecture of the same, and the skil of that people in Navigation; as also an intimation taken out of Martinius, touching the Ancientness of the Chinese Shipping, and their Colonies found setled in Madagoscar, and their Sailing in old times even as far as to the Red Sea. He concludeth this Chapter with describing the ships of Madagascar, Bengala, Macassar, Siam, Pegu, Maldives, Ormus, Congo, Russia, Lapland, Virginia, &c. 17. Demonstrates, how much weight of water there lieth against a Ship moving at Sea; having first laid down certain propositions made out by Stevinus in his Hydrostaticks; which Writers foot-steps our Author acknowledgeth to have follow'd herein. Besides he examins also the Center of Gravity of a Ship; which being known, it may be certainly concluded. How a Ship is to lye upon the water, and how heavy it is when 'tis floating, whether loaden or unloaden. Lastly he imparts the way of the Excellent Hudde, of calculating exactly, what burthen a ship can carry either in Salt or Sweet water? Where he also examins the weight of the water; in which a Ship is floating; for which purpose he caused to be made a Cube of Copper-plates, of half an Amsterdam-foot a side, fitted after a certain manner, too particular to be here related, whereby he found, that upon the 15th of March, a foot of Rain water weighed 49lb. 14½ ounces; and Y-water, 46lb. 2 1/8 ounces; and Texel-water, 46 lb. 9 ounces. To all which he adds the way of measuring the Quantity of a Ship's burthen, that hath been agreed upon between the King of Denmark and the States of the United Provinces; as also several ways of doing the same, used by other Nations, and particularly that of the English and French. 18. Explains and gives reasons for the several sizes and shapes of the parts of a ship; as why the Masts ought just to be of such a hulk and height? Why some of them must incline backward, some stand upright? Why a small Rudder can turn a great Ship; and a little Anker stay it? What maketh Ships not feel the Rudder? Why Vessels too broad are weak and prove inconvenient in high Winds? Why long and moderately narrow Ships endure the Sea better, than short and broad ones? How the Keel ought to be placed? Why Gallions and the parts of them are fram'd as they are? Why a Ship is to be broader before, then abaft? That Fregats, built long, narrow and low, sail best. What hinders well-sailing? Why Turkish Vessels are excellent Sailers? And many questions more, considered by this Author. 19. Reckons up the particulars of the loose apparatus neccessary in a moderately far Voyage for an hundred men, in a ship 134 foot long, both for her conduct and defence, and the Food of the Marriners. And so much of the First Part of this Book. The Second part comprehends the EQUIPPING and Conduct of Ships, and Navies, as well by the Antients as Moderns; couched in IV. Chapters. 1. Discourseth of the Equipping and Ordering of Ships and Sea-men, practised by the Greeks and Romans; as also of the Old rights and Laws of Marriners, their Victuals, Encouragements, Punishments, and Arms, together with their manner of Fighting, and Triumphing upon a victory obtained where are related several Sea-battels and their Events; as also divers famous Pirats, recorded in the Roman History. 2. Describeth the present Conduct and Government of the States General of the United Provinces in ther Warlike Fleets; together with their Orders for Convoy-ships. Where are inferred the particular Commands and Instructions given by the said States in the late War between England and that Republick; as also their Placaet concerning Prizes. To all which is subjoined the Ship-masters and Stiermans way of disciplining the Sea-men, and the manner and form of commanding them to perform their part according to the several occasions at Sea. Which Chapter is concluded with several remarks concerning the Load-stone and the Sea-Compass, and especially with what care the Needle for the Compass is to be touch't by the, Magnet. 3. Observeth the Ordering of Merchant-ships, and the Conduct of Admiralties; as also how they man and arm their Trade-ships in general, and in particular those that navigate Nord ward, and their Herring-Busses; as also those that saile to the Mediterranean. Further, how things are managed amongst them on Ship-board, in reference to the Seamen, Officers, Souldiers, &c. in their Navigation to the East and West-Indies, Greenland, &c. In this Chapter 'tis also represented, what benefits redound to a Country by Shipping, as to the increase both of its Power and Wealth. 4. Contains a Sea-Dictionary, explaining, the Names of the parts of a ship, and the words and phrases used among Seamen for all sorts of naval concerns. Here are two of the plates to give some idea of the materials included: