Copper Sky-light grating option in 1814?

[uss frolick]

 Summary of a letter held in the British National Archives describing a letter written by William Henry Percy, Captain of the Hermes, 20, dated May 8, 1814:

 

"Folios 236-237: William Henry Percy, HMS Hermes, Spithead. Requests the iron guards round the skylights be replaced with copper ones as they interfere with the compasses."

 

USS  Frolick and Wasp in the same year had brass guards. So Hermes already had iron ones, presumably cheaper. Copper one would required a lot of cleaning lest they green up. And how strong would copper guards be against a falling spar? Hermes would be destroyed in battle off Mobile, Alabama later that year.

 

Source:

 

https://discovery.nationalarchives.gov.uk/details/r/C16901176

 

 

 

 

[bruce d]

18 minutes ago, uss frolick said:

And how strong would copper guards be against a falling spar?

Were the guards actually intended to resist that type of impact? I assumed (I know, assumed = guessed) that the metal guardsover and around skylights spanned wooden slats/beams and their function was to add additional protection, not do the heavy work. This is based on a contemporary model, details long forgotten. It had a metal grating across the skylights clearly in the role described above, cutting out the minimum of light while offering protection against most whoopsies.

 

HTH

Bruce