Shipbuilding from its beginnings. Vol. 1 (of 3)Konijnenburg, E. van (Emile)
History
Shipbuilding from its beginnings. Vol. 1 (of 3)
Konijnenburg, E. van (Emile)
Shipbuilding -- History; Ships -- History
The “Smak” (smack) is as interesting a vessel as the “Kof” which it
resembles a great deal. It is a pure Holland type, bluff and flat
and very stable on the water. Le Comte calls it the sister of the
“Kof”. The shape of the “hoy” is found clearly again in this type.
They are not fine either at bow or stern, and resemble exactly
the old engravings of the “Smalschepen” and “Wijdschepen” and the
“Turfschepen”! Furthermore, they belong to the same family with these
last, but they are rather more strongly built as they are intended to
make longer voyages. The “smack” is the type of Frisian vessels. It
carries a “_statie_” and lee-boards. The main mast is at one-third of
the boat’s length from the bow and it carries also a small mast at the
stern in the “_statie_”. These vessels are generally 80 feet long, 22
feet wide and 9 feet deep. Their capacity varies from 70 to 140 tons.
They traded with France, England, even with Lisbon, to say nothing
of their traffic with the Baltic Sea. They were, however, especially
built, as ~Le Comte~ says (p. 12), to sail across the “Wadden” to
Groningen, Friesland and East Friesland. Witsen does not mention the
“smack”.
[Sidenote: II 210]
[Sidenote: II 209]
If the design of the “smack” be compared with that of the “Wijdschip”
mentioned by ~Witsen~ (p. 171), it is seen at once that it is a
question here of a mere change of name. Nor is there at bottom any
essential difference between the “Smalschip” and the “Wijdschip”. ~Van
Yk~ says (p. 308) that the only difference between the two types was
this: the “Smalschip” was so narrow that it could go through the city
of Gouda, while the “Wijdschip” had to go around. Hence they are two
like vessels which differ only in dimensions. If now, the designs of
these boats be compared with those of the “Turfschepen”, a perfect
resemblance is again to be noted. It is at the end of the XVIIIth
century that the generic name of “hoy” is given to all these vessels,
thus imitating what was done in Friesland.
THE SMALSCHIP AND THE WIJDSCHIP.
[Sidenote: II 210]
The “Smalschip” had the following dimensions: length, 60 feet; beam, 16
feet; depth, 14 feet: those of the “Wijdschip” were respectively: 70
feet, 20 feet and 8 feet 2 inches. These vessels carried a “statie”.
THE DAMLOOPER.
The “Damlooper” was a vessel of the same type as the preceding but
so built that it could pass through the lock of the “Leidschen Dam”.
~Van Yk~ gives its dimensions as follows (p. 312):
[Sidenote: II 212]
“’T Schip (de Damlooper) zal lang zijn 56 voeten, wijd dat de zwaarden
afhangen, het rakende en echter gemaklijk door de Duikers van den
Leidsen dam kan gebragt werde, zo sal dat schip op de bovebuitekant van
de Kimmegang of wentelstrook, so wijd als op ’t Barkhout wesen moeten
en ten minsten van binnen tegen de zetwegers gemeeten zijnde elf voeten
en een duym wijdte hebben.”[22]
The capacity of the vessel is given further on as 18 last (= 36 tonnes).
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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