The Conception of Hull Shape by Shell‐builders in the Ancient Mediterranean

Abstract

Did ancient Mediterranean shipbuilders at the turn of the first millennium have methods to pre‐design the shape of their hulls prior to the construction of the ship? If so, can these methods be identified? This paper proposes that ancient shipwrights were in possession of such design methods, based on geometry, that are comparable to the medieval and post medieval hull‐design procedures called whole‐moulding. These methods are well suited to be transformed into rules‐of‐thumb, therefore allowing the storage and transmission of accumulated knowledge. The implications of this proposal on the present understanding of the transition from shell‐ to skeleton‐building are explored.

Key words:

• shell‐first
• rules‐of‐thumb
• longitudinal hull conception
• rising and narrowing
• template
• moulds

Acknowledgements

The author would like to express his gratitude to Lucy Blue and especially to Julian Whitewright of the Centre for Maritime Archaeology (CMA) at the University of Southampton for their supervision, support and advice in the research that led to this paper. The author is very grateful to Thomas Dhoop from the CMA for his positive input and criticism of the different versions of this paper. Final thanks to the anonymous reviewers who identified several weak points in the initial drafts that needed further clarification.