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woodrat

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  1. woodrat
    The yards were too long to stow on deck and in the case of galleys, would get in the way of oarsmen. Lowered yards could also be used to drape awnings when in harbour. Here is a picture from Breydenbach's Peregrinatio in Terram Sanctam 1486 (artist Reuwich) showing a small trading vessel being loaded through a removable bulwark. Note that quarter rudders are used with a swing mount but have been removed while in port. Note also that the other vessel has a massive stern rudder which would be very difficult to unship. Dick
  2. woodrat
    Thanks, Steven. I know this drawing well as it was used on the cover of prof. Pryor's book "Geography, technology and war" . Required reading for anyone interested in the maritime history of the mediterranean in the mediaeval period I agree that the "horns" at the transom are wrongly drawn. They are probably meant to be lashed to the lowered yard. Question: When the yard was lowered, in the absence of horns, what did the yards rest on? Removable crutches? Alberto. I have reviewed all my images of the Black Sea vessel and I agree that there is definitely a gap in the starboard bulwark which is likely where a removable bulkhead was sited. I have put them on both port and starboard sides.. Cheers Dick
  3. woodrat
    Thanks, Alberto. The Laurons ship was one of the factors that persuaded me that removable bulwarks were often used. In addition the veneziano painting on which I base my reconstruction seems to show the coffin of St Mark being loaded across a gap in the bulwarks: I will have to closely look at that feature on the Black Sea vessel you have pointed out. Well spotted. Dick
  4. woodrat
    Including the coamings it is 67mm. equating to 2.14 metres which is 6.2 venetian piede Dick
  5. woodrat
    I am unaware of when gratings made their first appearance but have seen no evidence of them in the mediaeval period or earlier. Dick
  6. woodrat
    Steven. I found that tapering the wedges slightly from the outside to the inside allowed them to fit together more snugly. Then they are woolded. The dromon is looking fine. Too late to use it as a bread basket.😊 Dick
  7. woodrat
    I suppose so. All is supposition until I get some answer from the archaeologists. I have been unable to find pictures of hatches from contemporary sources. Dick
  8. woodrat
    Have installed the mast partners, main hatch and bitts. Dick
  9. woodrat
    Thanks for those pics, Binho. Most Useful. The round throughbeams have also puzzled me. The vessel is said to be a "round ship" although not as "round" as what people conceived a round ship to be. The Contarina I wreck is about the same period as the Black Sea vessel but regional differences are important. Just look at the vast range of different types of hull and rig extant in the 20th century in the Arabian Sea. One of the unusual findings in the Contarina ship was the cut off of top timbers level with the deck in the mid section of the ship. Combined with this was the slotted timbers at each end of the gap. This seems to represent a removable section of bulwark. Is this to facilitate cargo loading or to allow sweeps to be deployed? No-one knows but I favour a combination of the two. In any case, I have included this feature in my model. The section of bulwark could be lifted by two men and slid into position Here is the rake of the main (forward) mast here is the rake of the mizzen (rear) mast Cheers Dick
  10. woodrat
    Thanks, Binho. As I cant purchase the documentary in Oz, that would be most kind. Thanks also Mark and Steven. I do not plan to cover up any more of the hull framing. Partial deck plank it is. I have a tentative plan for the deck. It is largely driven by the position of the mast partners Dick
  11. woodrat
    I couldn't help it! The wood was crying out for moisture. So I slavered on lots of orange oil and the wood said "thank you". The hull is largely complete. I now will attend to the deck framing, hatchways and machinery. This is contentious as no deck framing has survived from Contarina I and the I am likely to fall off the perch before I get answers from the Black Sea!! Anyhoo, the next question is whether to fully plank or partially plank the deck or not at all. Decision, decisions! Btw, thanks for the likes and general support for what is a fairly exotic subject cheers Dick
  12. woodrat
    Shown here is the final addition to the quarter rudder mounting. This is a sliding rod (the dark rod ) which can slide in and out to lock the rudder against the lower through-beam. When it is required to raise the rudder, the sliding rod is slid back in. I believe this can be seen on the mounting of the Black Sea "round ship" Dick Slid out Slid in This is capture from the Black Sea video showing the quarter rudders from above and it shows the sliding rod as well:
  13. woodrat
    Thanks, Mark. In 1204 the blind Doge Dandolo, conspiring with his treacherous crusader partners, laid siege to, overcame and sacked with sickening slaughter the tottering Byzantine capital of Constantinople. Scuttling back to Venice with their loot (including the 4 bronze horses still seen on the facade of Sr Marks basilica) the venetians set to work to control the trading routes. The Byzantine empire was dismembered and Venice greedily clutched new possessions to her chest including the Peloponnese peninsula and Crete. Venice now controlled trade through the Adriatic, the Eastern Mediterranean, through the Dardanelles, into the Black Sea and as far as the Crimea. During the 14th century Venice was competing with its deadly rival the Genoese republic for control of the trading routes in the Mediterranean. After some scrappy battles, Venice was victorious, became pre-eminent in trade until superseded in the mid 15th century. Venice traded even as far as Northern Europe with its long range merchant galleys. Progressive loss of prestige and degeneration reduced the venetian republic to a shell until the latest bully Napoleon Buonaparte squashed Venice with his thumb in 1797. Here are some pics of the port quarter rudder in the up position. Note that the hoist is tight and the "uphaul" loose. Cheers Dick
  14. woodrat
    Steven, I am at about the same point with my round ship. That is, working out masting, associated tackle and deck furniture/machinery. There is very little contemporary help and the Black Sea is keeping its secrets for the nonce. However, there are some illustrations 12th and 13th century which show the halyard block and tackle heading obliquely at about 60 degrees back to the lower halyard block which is just in front of the poop or steersman . This is analogous to the way it is done in dhows. The halyard tackle was more vertical in carracks and cogs. I would be cautious using 19th century lateen rig as a model. I believe the pulleys in the "calcet" should point fore and aft so the yard can fall forward away from the mast (pole mast or built?) Dick
  15. woodrat
    Whatever type of truss you choose (and I don't think there are many wrong choices) you need to be able to loosen and tighten the truss with a tackle from deck level. The truss needs to be loosened to allow the yard to fall away from the mast (which is angled forward) so that the yard can be lowered or raised. It also needs to be loosened when the yard is transported around the mast during tacking (see Landstrom). Have you thought about where to put the halyard blocks? Dick
  16. woodrat
    Thanks, Druxey and Steven. The tackle as presently rigged allows an arc of 60 deg. That is 30 degrees in and 30 degrees out. This all that is required to steer since having a foil cross-sectioned rudder at angles of attack greater than 30 degrees leads to turbulence and a probable stall at 45 degrees (Gillmer and Johnson 1982 , Introduction to Naval Architecture. Quoted in L Mott: The Development of the Rudder.) Cheers Dick
  17. woodrat
    I have rigged the starboard quarter rudder using a system which I believe is shown in the Veneziano painting of the translatio of St Mark. The only way I could do this was to use a double pulley on the "uphaul" and with the ropes going under the throughbeam around the rudder and back up to the pulleys. The rudder hoist I have left as single pulleys. With the rudder in the down position the hoist is loose and the uphaul tight and pulling the rudder against the throughbeam. Dick
  18. woodrat
    I don't think it makes one iota of difference! Dick
  19. woodrat
    The hull framing is complete and looks more tidy. Now to plan the deck beams Dick
  20. woodrat
    Steven, I have had a message from Prof. Mauro Bondioli. In his learned opinion, rudder blades were indeed coated with pitch. Dick
  21. woodrat
    Here are pics showing the framing of the bow and hawse timbers which need to be strong. Dick
  22. woodrat
    No. The aft end of the curved guides (inner and outer) is permanently fixed to an extended beam. To remove the rudder when in port all that is required is to disconnect the rudder hoist and "uphaul". The rudder is reversed out of the mount with the help of a boat. The rudder then is floated off and towed away by one of the boats. It is reinstalled in the opposite manner, again with the help of a boat. That is my interpretation. Also, do you think that the rudder blades were coated with pitch? The MIchael of Rhodes manuscript shows the blades blackened. Dick
  23. woodrat
    Alberto, what is your specialty in archaeology, if you don't mind my asking? Dick
  24. woodrat
    I closely read Lawrence Mott's thesis. the poop superstructure is based solely on Veneziano's Pala Feriale transport of St Mark, as is the bow structure (to follow soon). The length of the rudders is 1/3 of keel length (Fabrica di Galere and Michael of Rhodes) Having fun. Dick
  25. woodrat
    Thanks, Alberto for the links to Twitter. They did work and I have had a good look at the mediaeval merchantman from 13th century. The rudder mount seems to tally with mine and I feel somewhat encouraged. The Contarina I wreck upon which I largely based my reconstruction has been tentatively dated to 1300 and so can really be regarded as a 13th century vessel contemporaneous with the Black Sea example. Unfortunately Amazon wont ship the video to Australia and Amazon Australia has never heard of it. It will turn up somewhere, I suppose. I am now turning my attention to the bow which is more bluff than the Black Sea vessel. Here are pictures of the quarter rudders in the down and up position. Cheers Dick

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