Tall Ship Models

"My darling (and I do mean that seriously ) wife loves the models once she sees them, but she is much more practical than I am, at least in the short term, so she doesn't buy for the future...if there is no space for something now, she says "why buy it."

I, however, am much more future oriented, and very aware of the fact that items of high quality but limited appeal to the general public may not be available in the future....books that aren't on the best seller list, classical music recordings, etc. There is always a niche market for high quality items, but it frequently becomes very expensive. Unfortunately, we live in a culture where it is nearly impossible to go broke making mediocre movies or producing annoying and cloned rap music, but quality, if not priced "competitively", frequently becomes extinct, in the mass market sense...try finding a a good quality toaster or other small appliance at any price.

I fully plan on unveiling all of the acquisitions when we have more space, I hope, in a few years, assuming I don't prematurely expire ( I am 63, but in much better shape than most my age... I should know, I'm a physician ). However, no one's future is assured.

Interestingly enough, my wife inquired today as to whether a friend of hers could bring her grandchildren over to see my ship models, as they seem to have a fascination for sailing ships ( probably watched Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean too many times), so I would say that's a positive sign.

Anyway, as usual, I have probably communicated more than you wish to hear.
Keep the colors flying and thanks to all your artisans for their greatly appreciated efforts.

Scott B."
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Our ship models are crafted one by one. Since early 2008, we have reached our full capacity. Sold-out models are placed on a construction list that has lower priority than custom models. Once sold out, we only start the model again when there are at least two interested persons who sign up. If you find something you like, we recommend you take it right away. Enjoy something you love today.

USS Constitution was never defeated in battle.   In 1844, USS Constitution became the first American warship to circumnavigate the globe.  USS Constitution is world’s oldest commissioned warship still afloat as of today.
 

Santísima Trinidad was famous as the only four-decker ship of the line ever built. Her 144 guns and her strong, growing red color scared away enemy ships who only dared to come in pack. This celebrated gigantic first-rate Spanish ship remained the world's biggest warship during her service.
 

HMS Resolution was the ship in which Captain James Cook made his second and third voyages of exploration in the Pacific. The Resolution impressed him enough that he called her "the ship of my choice", and "the fittest for service of any I have seen."

Royal Caroline is the official ship to transport the English Royal family.  Royal Caroline had several important design features and was the most advanced ship at the time.  
 

Cutty Sark, the beautiful clipper ship launched at Dumbarton on the Scottish Clyde, was renowned throughout the seafaring world and won a place in the hearts of British seamen, coming second only to Nelson's own immortal H.M.S. Victory.
 

Mary Rose was an English warship equipped with 78 guns. She was named after King Henry VIII's favorite sister who later became the queen of France.  Mary Rose was one of the first ships able to fire a broadside and was the second most powerful ship in the fleet and a firm favorite of the king.
 

Indefatigable was selected by C. S. Forester as the ship on which his fictional hero Horatio Hornblower spent most of his time as a midshipman in the novel Mr. Midshipman Hornblower. The Spanish flotilla incident also is fictionalized in Post Captain, the second of the Aubrey–Maturin series of novels by Patrick O'Brian. HMS Indefatigable is also mentioned in a novel by Alexander Kent.
 

Bomb ketch

HMS Terror's main armament consisted of two mortars. Terror saw war service in the the 1st Battle of Copenhagen in 1801 and War of 1812 against the United States. Because of her extremely strong hull to withstand the recoil of the mortars, Terror was converted in time of peace to explore the Antarctic region. The volcano Mount Terror on Ross Island in Antarctica was named after the ship, instead of vice-versa.  

Named after the royal house, Wasa was built to represent the power and glory of the great King Gustave II of Sweden when the country was the dominant military force in the Baltic. In 1628, Wasa was built to be the most powerful and beautiful warships ever to sail the seven seas.

Great Eastern was a monster for its time, six times larger than any ship ever built before.  Great Eastern is perhaps best remembered as the ship that laid the first transatlantic telegraph cable. It was the only ship large enough to carry the length of cable required. The cable linking America with Europe was put in place in September, 1866.

The "REALE" in the name points out that she belonged to the king personally. The ship was decorated by the sculptor Pierre Puget. Some of the stern ornaments are shown in the Musée de la Marine in Paris, which also holds the original plans and many documents about the Real De France.

Amerigo Vespucci was built in 1930. She is the largest of the full rigged ships used by the navies of the world for sail-training, the ‘Amerigo Vespucci’ was named for the Italian navigator and explorer who lived in the 15th century and for whom America was named! 
 

In the middle of the Napoleonic era (1805), the French had captured most of Europe and intended to seize England.   HMS Surprise received the specific instructions: "Intercept French Acheron…you will sink, burn, or take her as prize."
 

After five years in service between Britain and North America, HMS Sirius was fitted out for service as flagship of the "First Fleet" On May 13, 1787 the First Fleet embarked from Plymouth, England on a journey to the far side of the world. The fleet was bound for the great South Land to establish the penal colony of New South Wales, the future first state of the Australian Commonwealth. The fleet arrived in Botany Bay eight months and one week later. On January 26, 1788, the fleet sailed to Port Jackson and Captain Phillip landed to proclaim the first Australia Day.
 

In an historic naval fight, the 20-gun Mercury defeated two finest Turkey ships with a combination of 184 guns. Captained the Mercury was 28-years old captain-lieutenant Kazarsky who was considered the bravest officer of Russia's Black Sea Fleet.
          

Essex was  the first Yankee warship that captured a ship of the Royal Navy. During her first eight weeks at sea, she had taken nine British ships.  In 17 months  she went on to sweep the Pacific of British whalers,  merchantmen, and warships, taking 16 vessels in all.
 

150-year old sloop-of-war, the last all-sail ship built by the U.S. Navy.  The first U.S. Navy ship to bear the name Constellation, for the "new constellation of stars" on the American flag.  

There is little doubt that the Vigilant was the last Baltimore Clipper. Vigilant sailed for 138 years -- an outstanding achievement for a wooden ship which plied the waters, to the North and the South, especially in the Caribbean where saltwater, heat, worms, etc. decimate any wooden vessel. Vigilant outdated all other vessels by many decades despite enemy fire, treacherous coral reefs, and the yearly hurricane season.                    
 

At the time of the Revolutionary War, Benjamin Franklin was ambassador to France where he purchased French-built corsair. These corsairs were the predecessors of the Baltimore Clippers. The ships were painted black so as to be nearly invisible at night. They were named Black Prince and Black Princess. The crew were Portuguese seamen but captained by an American. They preyed on the British trade in English coastal waters and for over a year nearly destroyed Britain’s trade with the rest of the world. 
                                                                                                                

The Golden Hind, captained by Sir Francis Drake (the admiral of the fleet that defeated the great Spanish Armanda in 1588),  circumnavigated the world 1577-1580.  The journey started with 5 ships but only flagship Golden Hind survived.  During the course of travel, Francis Drake raided and pillaged the Spanish colonies along the western coast of Americas, returning with booty worth 500,000 pounds, including 26 tons of silver. Golden Hind's achievement marked the beginning of the rise of England as a major maritime power.
                                             

The San Mateo represents a Spanish galleon from the 16th century and was part of the fleet of Philip II.  She is a typical example for the characteristic Spanish galleons.  Because of their perilous ways, these galleons were a cross between freighter and battle-cruiser. 

Götheborg is a sailing replica of an 18th century Swedish East Indiaman, a wooden sailing vessel. The original sank off Gothenburg, Sweden on 12 September 1745 while approaching its home harbor after returning from her third voyage to China.

 

Batavia was a ship of the Dutch East India Company (VOC). She was built in Amsterdam in 1628 and shipwrecked on her maiden voyage.  She was made famous by the subsequent mutiny and massacre that took place among the survivors. A twentieth century replica of the ship is now in Lelystad, the Netherlands.
 

Great Britain was by far the largest ship in the world at that time.  She was the world's first steamship with a hull made of iron.  She also was the first propeller-driven ship to achieve the Atlantic crossing.

In 1852, the Marco Polo sailed from Liverpool to Port Phillips Head in 76 days. After spending 3 weeks in port, she returned to Liverpool in another 76 days.  Her total trip time was 5 months, 21 days, making this the first round trip in less than 6 months.  This record stood for 15 years.

This small and sturdy 200 ton-cargo vessel-with not even the barest amenities of a passenger ship-- managed to carry a courageous band of 200 Scots to a safe landing  in Pictou harbor, marking the beginning of a stead stream of Highland emigration to the area that became known as Nova Scota on Canada's Atlantic coast.  A full-sized replica of the Hector has been built to sail again.   
                                           

At the time of the Revolutionary War, Benjamin Franklin was ambassador to France where he purchased French-built corsair. These corsairs were the predecessors of the Baltimore Clippers. The ships were painted black so as to be nearly invisible at night. They were named Black Prince and Black Princess. The crew were Portuguese seamen but captained by an American. They preyed on the British trade in English coastal waters and for over a year nearly destroyed Britain’s trade with the rest of the world. 
                                                                                                                

This ship represented the masterpiece of French shipbuilding at the end of the XVII century.  She was built in 1962 in Toulon by the master shipwright Francois Coulomb and decorated by Jean Berain.  With her 116 cannons, she was the largest and the most decorated ship in the world.
 

The Ville de Paris was a large three-decker French ship of the line that became famous as the flagship of the Comte de Grasse during the American War of Independence.

Named in honor of the Sun King Louis XIV, Soleil Royal was the symbol of grace and capacity. As the flagship of the French Navy, Soleil Royal was sumptuously decorated with wooden carvings that depicted a variety of motifs symbolic of the French monarch.
 

Le Napoléon was the first purpose-built steam battleship in the world. She is also considered the first true steam battleship, and the first screw battleship ever. Launched in 1850, she was the lead ship of a class of 9 battleships, all considered as very successful and built over a period of 10 years.  This class of ship was designed by the famous naval designer Dupuy de Lôme.
 

Potosi was a five-masted full-rigged ship built in 1895. Equipped with a patented brace winches for the lower, top-sail yards and a patent for the fall winches, she was able to take 6,000 tons of cargo!  She proved herself very profitable.  Potosi had a total sail-area of 59,770 sq. feet!
 

HMS St. George was named for the patron saint of England.  In 1801, she was Rear Admiral Horatio Nelson's flagship prior to the Battle of Copenhagen; he transferred his flag to HMS Elephant, whose lighter draft enabled him to sail closer inshore for the bombardment of the Danish capital on April 2. In 1811, St. George was the flagship of Rear Admiral Robert Reynolds's Baltic Fleet.   SOLD OUT.  Wish list
 

The English flagship in the battle of Armada.  The first of the new "race-built" vessels to grace the English fleet.   Regarded as one of the finest galleons in the world. 

During the Revolutionary War, the famous captain John Paul Jones sailed to France in the Ranger carrying word of General Burgoyne's historic surrender at Saratoga.  As his ship intered Quiberon Bay on Feb 14, 1778, Jones fired 13 guns and received in return a rousing salute from the French fleet marking the first time that the new American flag-the Stars and Stripes- was officially acknowledged by a foreign power.  It was also abroad the Ranger, later the same year, that Jones launched the series of bold sea raids along the British coast that earned him his distinguished reputation as a fearless seaman.  Wish list  or have it faster: commission it..                                              
 

In April 1775, with few field guns and scant gunpowder, Washington appealed to the Continental Congress for supplies.  The new nation, however, did not have the means to resupply Washington's army.  Therefore, Washington chartered the fishing schooner Hannah to raid British shipping of military supplies. The Hannah became the first of eleven vessels chartered to aid the revolutionary cause.  Over the six months of the American siege of Boston, "Washington's Navy" captured some fifty-five prizes, provided much-needed supplies to the troops, and boosted the efforts of naval-minded members of Congress who sought to create a national naval force. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
 

Intrepid was a 64-ton, four-gun ketch, built in France in 1798. She was subsequently sold to Tripoli and used by the Barbary Pirates based there to capture the frigate USS Philadelphia on October 31, 1803.  Less than two months later, Intrepid was captured by USS Enterprise and was placed under the command of Lieutenant Stephen Decatur.  On the night of February 16, 1804, Decatur sailed Intrepid into Tripoli harbor, boarded the ex-American frigate Philadelphia and set her afire. Tripoli harbor was fairly shallow and only a shallow draught ship could have made the daring plan work.  In Admiral Nelson's view, it was "the most daring act of the age."  Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
 

Spirit of Enterprize

Spirit of Enterprize is a near replica of the USS Enterprise, the third US naval vessel to have that name. That vessel, which was built in Baltimore in 1799 was called, "Lucky little Enterprize" due to its fabulously successful career in the campaign against the Barbary pirates and in the War of 1812.  For Star Trek fans, this is the vessel that they meant to portray in the movie "Star Trek: Generations".  Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.

The pride of Queen Victoria, Warrior was constructed entirely of iron--a first for a warship in response to the French Gloire in the 19th century arms race.  The British Battleship HMS Warrior never fired a shot in anger and never blockaded a hostile port, yet she played a famous part in naval history.  Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                            

HMS Neptune was a 98-gun 2nd rate ship of the line which fought at the Battle of Trafalgar.  She played an important role in the battle, stationed third in the weather line, behind the flagship Victory and the Temeraire.  She attacked and captured the Spanish flagship Santisima Trinidad.  After the battle, it was the Neptune that towed the crippled Victory, bearing Nelson's body, back to Gibraltar. Neptune served as the flagship for Rear Admiral Sir Alexander Cochrane leading the fleet that captured the French colony of Martinique in the West Indies in 1809. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                         

HMS Pickle was a 10-gun cutter of the Royal Navy. She was the smallest ship present at the Battle of Trafalgar.  Pickle was the first ship to bring the news of Nelson's victory to Great Britain, arriving at Falmouth on November 4, 1805.  She had been chosen to carry the dispatches of Vice Admiral Collingwood who had taken over after the death of Nelson.  After arriving in Falmouth Lapenotiere took a coach to London to deliver the dispatches to the Admiralty, he was promoted to Master and Commander for his efforts.  To this day the Navy's petty officers have an annual Pickle Night dinner, as do many private clubs in the British Commonwealth.  HMS Pickle struck a shoal at Cádiz and was lost in 1808. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                         

 HMS Supply, 168 tons was the swiftest sailor in the First fleet and acted as a scout and message carrier. It was the first ship which enters Botany Bay on January 19, 1788.  The Supply rates with the Sirius as the most famous historical ship or the new Australian nation. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                         

At the Battle of Trafalgar,  Redoutable closely engaged with HMS Victory.  Her crew fiercely attacked the Victory, causing much damage. The crew and soldiers maintained a heavy fire on the quarterdeck with hand-grenades and small arms, and a French marksman mortally wounded Admiral Horatio Nelson from the fighting top.  The French crew were about to board the Victory but the HMS Temeraire intervened, firing on the exposed French crew at point blank range.  At 1.55 p.m., Redoutable, with Captain Lucas severely wounded, and only 99 men still fit out of 643, slowly sinking and with no hope of help, struck her colors.  The Victory had 160 casualties, and the Temeraire 120.  She sank the next day.  Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                                                                                     

Océan was a 118-gun first-rate three-decker ship of the line of the French Navy.  Designed by the famous engineer Jacques-Noël Sané, who was nicknamed "The Naval Vauban", Océan marks a step in the evolution of ship of the line design.  All further French sail battleships were inspired from her plans. English shipyards of the time copied the French vessels which they captured.  Ocean's hull was simple with straight lines, minimal ornaments, and curved sides. The rear was almost integrated into the hull. The performances of such vessels were almost comparable to those of a frigate. The masts were both thinner and higher but stronger than the 18th century designs. The aft sail of the mizzen had taken its definitive shape around 1780; Topgallant sails were common, which allowed to vary the surface of sails according to the wind with more subtlety. This allowed to evolve closer to the direction opposed to the wind.  Océan spent much of her early career as the fleet flagship.  She was the flagship of Rear-Admiral Villaret-Joyeuse in the Battle of the Glorious First of June in 1794.  A year later, Océan fought in the Battle of Groix as Villaret's flagship.   A large 1:48 model can be seen at the Musée de la Marine in Paris. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
 

The 64-gun ship's construction began under the direction of Noël Pomet under the reign of the French king Louis XV, in 1757 in Toulon.  She was launched in May 1760 and sailed until 1789.  She was a part of the count of Estaing's fleet during the Grenada campaign on the 6th of July 1779.  Le Protecteur measured 74 meters long, 14 meters wide and 64 meters in heigh! A 1:33 model of her is in Musée de la Marine in Paris. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                             

Sao Miguel was a XVI century armed Portuguese merchantman.  Her design is the transition from medieval merchant ship and the galleon, classifiable for its particular structures of the forecastle and quarterdeck among the carracks.  In 1519, she took part in an important expedition which led Fernando Cortez to conquer Mexico.  Some of her interesting features were the balcony, the apartments under the small quarterdeck, and the superstructure of the decks that provided awnings, clearly indicated that the ship was used to transport high-class passengers.  Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                             

 In 1642, the Dutch war ship Heemskerch, captained by Abel Janszoon (the Dutch East India Company's leading navigator), circumnavigated Australia.  This discovery indicated that Australia was a vast island continent, and not part of a southern landmass connected to the South Pole.  The discovery of Van Diemen's land and the exploration of New Zealand were further relevations that led cosmographers of his day to redraw the map of the world, and paved the way for future explorers.  Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                         

 Working for the Spanish, the Portuguese explorer Ferdinand Magellan set sail in September 1519 with a fleet of five ships and 270 men.  His flagship was the Trinidad.  After befriending an island king in the Philippines, Magellan became involved in a tribal warfare of the natives and was killed in a battle.  The eighty five ton caravel Vittoria of the original fleet continued onwards and became the first ship to sail around the world when she arrived back in Spain in Sept 1522--almost 3 years from the day her journey began. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                         

 In 1606, the small Dutch ship Duyfken sailed from the Indonesian island of Banda in search of gold and trade opportunities on the fabled island of Nova Guinea.  Duyfken did not reach gold but  instead the northern coast of a huge continent: Australia. Captain Janszoon was the first person to map and record Australia.  His voyage marks the beginning of Australia’s recorded history. Sign up for updates: Wish list  or have it faster: commission it.
                                         

Built in 1902, Thomas W. Lawson was the grandest of many new designs for schooners that were trying to fight the competition from steam-powered merchantmen.  Having 7 masts, she was one of several large American-built  multi-masted schooners.  Thomas W. Lawson can be operated by a crew of only sixteen and used steam winches for managing her one acre of sails.  She was said to handle like "a beach whale."  She was sucessful in service as a coal cargo ship a nd later an oil tanker. Sign up for updates: Wish list or have it faster: commission it.