I am a retired dentist from Canada who now lives in Venice Italy. My passion has always been with ships and ship models. I have a large collection of Venetian model ships but now I study the construction methods through the old documents. There are several other John Davis' or John S....I am John Stewart, it is confusing with a common name Phone: 041 522 6863 Address: 1163 Dorsoduro, Venezia, 30123 Italia
Objective In the context of an archaeological excavation of the 14 th century galley shipwreck fo... more Objective In the context of an archaeological excavation of the 14 th century galley shipwreck found in the lagoon of Venice near the now-submerged island of San Marco in Boccalama, by the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archaeologici in 2001, I wished to study a hypothesis for the reconstruction of the original hull shape using the archaeological, written and iconographical sources available and record the problems to realize this objective. A half model was constructed in a scale of 1:42 which would allow for a small amount of detail while keeping the overall length under control and this was presented as a poster project. A Venetian Great Galley was about 118 pie (Venetian feet) or about 41 metres in length. Archaeological sources Very few galley wrecks exist to study, in fact of two known Venetian galleys, one a fusta (a galley smaller than a light galley), was found in Lake Garda, Italy, and the other is the wreck of a Venetian Great galley, found at the now-submerged island of San Marco in Boccalama which has been dated to the beginning of the 14 th century. The Boccalama wreck was excavated in 2001 and it appears to have been a used hull that had been cut or razed at a level of approximately halfway between the wale and the bilge, fixed in place with a series of posts then sunk and filled with mud and sand along with another flat bottomed boat called a rascona in an attempt to reinforce the island against encroachment of the lagoon. The attempt did not work and the wrecks along with the island soon disappeared into the lagoon. The anaerobic nature of the mud preserved very well most of the timbers, much like the millions of tree trunks that were pounded into the mud to act as pillars for the overlying city of Venice, which are still functioning. (ref. La Galea Ritrovata, 2003) The team involved decided to do only a superficial examination without excavating under the hull, and using photogrammetric techniques to make a 3D photgraphic rendering of the hull (see pg.12. La Galea Ritrovata). After their work was completed the wreck was protected and allowed to be covered again by the lagoon. Looking at the results of the excavation there is clearly visible: the keel, floor timbers, with the lower parts of the futtocks, the bottom outside planks, the keelson, the inside bilge stringers, the mast step assembly with the side supports, and many of the internal covering planks, with their mortise and scarf joints clearly visible. The stem and stern posts are largely uncovered or destroyed. There are a couple of examples parts of frames called mezi legni, literally half timbers, which were used between the post and the choltro. (see photos La Galea Ritrovata , ppg. 68-77) Hopefully a scientific publication will be forthcoming on the findings of the excavation team.
Objective In the context of an archaeological excavation of the 14 th century galley shipwreck fo... more Objective In the context of an archaeological excavation of the 14 th century galley shipwreck found in the lagoon of Venice near the now-submerged island of San Marco in Boccalama, by the Soprintendenza per i Beni Archaeologici in 2001, I wished to study a hypothesis for the reconstruction of the original hull shape using the archaeological, written and iconographical sources available and record the problems to realize this objective. A half model was constructed in a scale of 1:42 which would allow for a small amount of detail while keeping the overall length under control and this was presented as a poster project. A Venetian Great Galley was about 118 pie (Venetian feet) or about 41 metres in length. Archaeological sources Very few galley wrecks exist to study, in fact of two known Venetian galleys, one a fusta (a galley smaller than a light galley), was found in Lake Garda, Italy, and the other is the wreck of a Venetian Great galley, found at the now-submerged island of San Marco in Boccalama which has been dated to the beginning of the 14 th century. The Boccalama wreck was excavated in 2001 and it appears to have been a used hull that had been cut or razed at a level of approximately halfway between the wale and the bilge, fixed in place with a series of posts then sunk and filled with mud and sand along with another flat bottomed boat called a rascona in an attempt to reinforce the island against encroachment of the lagoon. The attempt did not work and the wrecks along with the island soon disappeared into the lagoon. The anaerobic nature of the mud preserved very well most of the timbers, much like the millions of tree trunks that were pounded into the mud to act as pillars for the overlying city of Venice, which are still functioning. (ref. La Galea Ritrovata, 2003) The team involved decided to do only a superficial examination without excavating under the hull, and using photogrammetric techniques to make a 3D photgraphic rendering of the hull (see pg.12. La Galea Ritrovata). After their work was completed the wreck was protected and allowed to be covered again by the lagoon. Looking at the results of the excavation there is clearly visible: the keel, floor timbers, with the lower parts of the futtocks, the bottom outside planks, the keelson, the inside bilge stringers, the mast step assembly with the side supports, and many of the internal covering planks, with their mortise and scarf joints clearly visible. The stem and stern posts are largely uncovered or destroyed. There are a couple of examples parts of frames called mezi legni, literally half timbers, which were used between the post and the choltro. (see photos La Galea Ritrovata , ppg. 68-77) Hopefully a scientific publication will be forthcoming on the findings of the excavation team.
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