John C. Mannone
01-31-2004, 12:58 AM
Hello everybody. Been enjoying Charlotte, NC since Dec 1. This is the first chance I had to visit this site.
Since you are all quite a bright bunch, you might help me settle a question of when such a vessel (described below) could have been built; that is, a century "no earlier than..."
Though the story is fiction, the technology is not.
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Construction of the “Raft” with Sail
-Twenty tall trees, dried and well-seasoned alder, popular, and fir
-Skillfully smoothed and made straight
-Bored [with augers] all the pieces and fitted them together
-Hammered them together with pegs and morticings*
- Marked out the curve of the hull of a freight-ship, broad beamed, wide as a man
-Set up the deck-beams, bolted them to the close-set ribs, and labored on; and finished the “raft” with long gunwales
-Set a mast and a yard-arm on the raft; made a steering-oar
-Fenced in the whole from stem to stern with willow withes and strewed much brush (to protect against the waves)
-Made a cloth sail, and he fashioned that too with skill
-Secured the raft braces, halyards, and sheets
-Launched with levers
(adapted from "The Odyssey" , Book V, by Homer)
Could this description be consistent with 13th century BC ancient Greek construction technology or simply reflect the 8th century BC craftsmanship?
*mor·tise or mor·tice n
1. a hole or slot cut into a piece of wood, stone, or other material, for a projecting part (tenon) to be inserted into it, in order to form a tight joint
2. a hole cut in a printing plate to receive type or another plate
(Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation)
Thanks for your help,
John
Since you are all quite a bright bunch, you might help me settle a question of when such a vessel (described below) could have been built; that is, a century "no earlier than..."
Though the story is fiction, the technology is not.
_______________________________________
Construction of the “Raft” with Sail
-Twenty tall trees, dried and well-seasoned alder, popular, and fir
-Skillfully smoothed and made straight
-Bored [with augers] all the pieces and fitted them together
-Hammered them together with pegs and morticings*
- Marked out the curve of the hull of a freight-ship, broad beamed, wide as a man
-Set up the deck-beams, bolted them to the close-set ribs, and labored on; and finished the “raft” with long gunwales
-Set a mast and a yard-arm on the raft; made a steering-oar
-Fenced in the whole from stem to stern with willow withes and strewed much brush (to protect against the waves)
-Made a cloth sail, and he fashioned that too with skill
-Secured the raft braces, halyards, and sheets
-Launched with levers
(adapted from "The Odyssey" , Book V, by Homer)
Could this description be consistent with 13th century BC ancient Greek construction technology or simply reflect the 8th century BC craftsmanship?
*mor·tise or mor·tice n
1. a hole or slot cut into a piece of wood, stone, or other material, for a projecting part (tenon) to be inserted into it, in order to form a tight joint
2. a hole cut in a printing plate to receive type or another plate
(Encarta® World English Dictionary © 1999 Microsoft Corporation)
Thanks for your help,
John