Har Har, uss frolick.
I did read somewhere sometime, that it was common practice to caulk gun port lids shut in heavy weather, which if you look at these lids they often have a small 'port' lid in the middle with that distinctive horseshoe hinge, presumably to gain a little ventilation.
It's hard to imagine, but all these sailing ships were relatively small compared to ships these days and you know how even large modern ships can be thrown about like the proverbial cork in a big storm.
Can't remember how near the water 'Victory's' lower gun ports were, but it could have been only about foot or so when fully loaded. Crikey!
Had another thought today....when did hammock nettings/cradles come into common use?
And is there any evidence to suggest the open waists had some sort of canvass covering during heavy weather. Again, in a storm, they must have taken regular green seas over the bulwarks. Sailors were seriously tough then, and there was a significant number discharged with insanity. Truly a different world.
I also believe it was common to rig nets over the open decks, to catch any falling tackle/debris, especially during combat. When was the last time that you saw that feature on a model?
Thanks again to everyone who has contributed to this post. Much appreciated.
