The Rowing Galley

Early Construction.

As regards the construction of the vessel itself : in the cataphract class the lower deck was i ft. above the water-line. Below this deck was the hold, which con tained a certain amount of ballast, and through an aperture in this deck the buckets for baling were worked, entailing a labour which was constant and severe on board an ancient ship at sea. The keel appears to have had considerable camber. Under it was a strong false keel, very necessary for vessels that were con stantly drawn up on the shore. Above the keel was the kelson, under which the ribs were fastened. These were so arranged as to give the necessary intervals for the oar-ports above. Above the kelson lay the upper false keel, into which the mast was stepped. The stem rose from the keel at an angle of about 70° to the water. Within was an apron, which was a strong piece of timber curved and fitting to the end of the keel and beginning of the stem-post and firmly bolted into both, thus giving solidity to the bows, which had to bear the beak and sustain the shock of ramming. As steering was effected by means of two rudders, one on either side, there was no need to carry out the stern into a rudder post as with modern ships, and the stern was left, therefore, much more free, an advantage in respect of the manoeuvring of the ancient Greek man-of-war, the weapon being the beak or rostrum, and the power of turning quickly being of the highest importance.

After the ribs had been set up and covered in on both sides with planking, the sides of the vessel were further strengthened by waling-pieces carried from stern to stem and meeting in front of the stem-post. These were further strengthened with additional balks of timber, the lower waling-pieces meeting about the water level and prolonged into a sharp three-toothed spur, of which the middle tooth was the longest. This was covered with hard metal (generally bronze) and formed the beak. The whole structure of the beak projected about io ft. beyond the stem-post. Above it, but projecting much less beyond the stem-post, was the "proembolion," or second beak, in which the prolongation of the upper set of waling-pieces met. This was generally fashioned into the figure of a ram's head, also covered with metal. Sometimes there was a second line of waling-pieces terminating in another boss. These bosses, when a vessel was rammed, completed the work of destruction begun by the sharp beak at the water-level, giving a racking blow which caused her to heel over and so eased her off the beak, releasing the latter before the weight of the sinking vessel could come upon it. At the point where the pro longation of the second and third waling-pieces began to converge inwards towards the stem on either side of the vessel stout cat heads projected, which were of use, not only as supports for the anchors, but also as a means of inflicting damage on the upper part of an enemy's vessel, while protecting the side gang ways of its own and the banks of oars that worked under them.

The catheads were strengthened by strong balks of timber, which were firmly bolted to them under either extremity and both within and without, and ran to the ship's side. Above the curvature of the upper waling-pieces were the cheeks of the vessel, generally painted red, and in the upper part of these the eyes, answering to our hawse holes, through which ran the cables for the anchors. On either side the trireme, at about the level of the thranitic benches. projected a gangway resting against the ribs of the vessel. This gangway was planked in along its outer side so as to afford pro tection to the seamen and marines, who could pass along its whole length without impeding the rowers. Here, in action, the sailors were posted as light-armed troops, and when needed could use the long supernumerary oars. The ribs, prolonged upwards upon an inward curve, supported on their upper ends the cross beams which tied the two sides of the vessel together and carried the deck. In the cataphract class these took the place of the thwarts which in the earlier vessels, at a lower level, yoked together the sides of the vessel, and formed also benches for the rowers to sit on. On the deck were stationed the marines, fighting men in heavy armour. The forecastle had a raised deck. In the stern the decks rose in two or three gradations, upon which was a kind of deck-house for the captain and a seat for the steerer, who steered by means of ropes attached to the tillers fixed in the upper part of the paddles, which, in later times at least, ran over wheels, giving him increased power. Behind the deck-house rose the flagstaff, on which was hoisted the pennant, and from which probably signals were given in the case of an admiral's ship. On either side of the deck ran a balustrade, which was covered for protection during action with felt or canvas. Above was stretched a strong awning of hide as a protection against grappling irons and missiles of all kinds.

All the Attic triremes appear to have been built upon the same model, and their gear was interchangeable. The Athenians had a peculiar system of girding the ships with long cables, each trireme having two or more, which, passing through eyeholes in front of the stern-post, ran all round the vessel lengthwise im mediately under the waling-pieces. They were fastened at the stern and tightened up with levers. These cables by shrinking as soon as they were wet, tightened the whole fabric of the vessel, and in action, in all probability, relieved the hull from part of the shock of ramming, the strain of which would be sustained by the waling-pieces convergent in the beaks. These rope-girdles are not to be confused with the process of undergirding or f rap ping, such as is narrated of the vessel in which St. Paul was being carried to Italy. The trireme appears to have had two masts. In action the Greeks did not use sails, and everything that could be lowered was stowed below. The mainmasts and larger sails were often left ashore if a conflict was expected.