NAVAL ARCHITECTURE, HISTORY OF. The first example of any construction fit ted to be borne up by the waters is recorded in Scripture, in the case of the ark built by under the divine assistance and commands. As this was built by more than human aid, it is not surprising that we hear of no farther at tempts at building vessels of any kind, until the nation of the Egyptians was formed, who doubtless profited by those arts and sciences which, as is generally admitted, were practised before the flood, and transmitted by Noah and his family to his posterity. The Egyptians, we are told, constructed the barks which they used on the Nile of planks cut out of the acacia, or Egyptian thorn ; the planks were nearly square, measuring about three feet each way, and being lapped over each other like tiles, were fastened together with wooden pins. The joints and seams were carefully calked with the papyrus, and benches of the same material were formed for the rowers. As the necessity of some impelling and directing force in aid of human labour was soon felt, a rudder and a sail were quickly added. The sail, which was made of the papyrus, was fastened to a pole serving as a mast, which was made of the acantha. As such vessels were incapable of stemming the current of the river when the wind was unfavourable, they used to be towed by persons on the bank, and when they went with the current, the Egyptians used to acce. lerate their motion by tying a hurdle of tama risk to the prow of the vessel, and letting it down into the water, the stream acted on the hurdle more strongly than it would on the sides of the vessel, and thus increased the ve locity of its motion very materially. In order to preserve a due balance between the head and the stern, which might otherwise have been destroyed by the action of the hurdle, they caused a stone of considerable magnitude, pierced through the middle, to be suspended by a rope from the stern, which enabled them to swim nearly with an even keel.
The first contrivance to supply the place of commercial vessel is generally admitted to have been a kind of rail, or collection of trees fastened together with ropes, made from the bark. But as in a structure so rude they were altogether without the power of directing their course, they set about remedying this in convenience, by putting a few thick planks to the depth of three or four feet in the water be tween the joists of the trees which composed the raft. These being raised or lowered at the pleasure of the pilot, served in some mea sure the purpose proposed. With no better contrivances than this, the Phenicians are said to have visited the islands of Sicily, Cor sica, and various other islands in the Medi terranean. It is also worthy of observation, that floats answering to the description of these were found in the South seas in the last century.
Although the Greeks were not remarkable for a spirit of commercial enterprise, yet the remains of antiquity furnish us with ample evidence of the advances which they made in the art of shipbuilding. They had vessels of different forms and sizes, distinguished, ac cording to their use, into ships of passage, ships of burden, and ships of war. The latter were likewise designated triremes, quadremes, and quinquiremes, according to the number of banks of oars, which were raised in a sloping direction one above another. Those which had most banks were built highest, and rowed with the greatest strength. The Greeks, in all probability, derived their knowledge of shipbuilding from the Carthaginians, a warlike and trading people, descended from the Phe nicians, who were celebrated for their skill in the construction and management of vessels. In consequence of their contests with the Ro mans,' the latter, after having suffered one or two defeats in naval engagements, acquired the art of building ships from their rivals, and successfully employed it to their over throw.