“Wooden Ship Building and the Interpretation of Shipwrecks” by J. Richard Steffy.
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I have had this book on my bookshelf for a year or so. I find it a fascinating and extremely informative read. The book is well written and I find as an “untrained reader” it is relatively easy to follow. The research and educational aspects of Steffy’s book will possibly appeal to a wide audience, in particular those of you who like to dig into the architectural aspects of a ship and her construction.
I have taken a few photos of the book. It comprises 314 pages and is broken into three main parts. At the rear of the book is an excellent Illustrated Glossary of Ship and Boat Terms. The definitions of terms used in the text of the book, accompanied by referenced illustrations is very useful. The glossary is “limited to construction terminology”, so a reader looking for general shiphandling and general nautical terms will still need a good nautical dictionary. There are also many references to common rigs.
The fly leaf tells us there are three parts:
Part 1 is the discipline and provides “enough basic information to permit the untrained reader to understand the analysis of ship and boat construction that follows”. I particularly enjoyed this section. The basics of ship stability was, for me, an ideal recap of my past studies and practical uses. This section then continues with design fundamentals and hull lines, again very useful sections.
Part 2 is a brief history of shipbuilding technology. As can be seen from the contents page copied below it covers a number of topics starting with the ancient world. Specific vessels are referenced in this first topic from the Royal Ship of Cheops, to the Dashur boats and also includes, but is not limited to, the Kyrenia Ship. Part 2 continues through medieval times and then to the age of global seafaring.
Part 3 is more specific to the archaeological aspects of shipwrecks. It includes recording of hull remains and archival information, and converting data into plans and publications.
At the rear of the book is the glossary I mentioned previously. The book ends with a bibliography and the usual index.
I had to search widely for this book and found a few copies for sale but at inflated prices. I therefore contacted the Texas A & M Press directly. They were more than helpful and responded to my questions and purchase promptly. If you are interested they can be contacted through
www.tamupress.com (I am not affiliated in any way).
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Some sample pages using the Kyrenia as an example:
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