Ship model galiot Stadt Elbing of 1738

Scale 1 : 50, length 82 cm, width 20 cm, height 67 cm
More photos: of entire ship, of details. Click on the photos for high resolution pictures!

The galiot "Stadt Elbing" of 1738

The galiot Stadt Elbing was built in 1738 at an Elbing shipyard for the merchant Heinrich Doering. She was launched on 6 September 1738 and had been the first large ship after a long time, that was constructed by a local shipyard. Therefore a great celebration was organized that evening with the honorary citizenry of the town.
There is an exact documentation of the size of the ship, and a contemporary copperplate engraving of the ship was made by Johann Friedrich Endersch.
At the stern the galiot flies the flag of Elbing. The red-and-white streamer at the main pays tribute to the protector power Poland. The red vanes at all mastheads indicated the wind direction. The jack usually was the shipping company flag. Its dimensions were exactly regulated in later times, including the blue painted flag pole. One can assume that the two angels holding the Elbing coat of arms, as they were documented in the copperplate engraving, were used by Heinrich Doering as his company flag.

The galiot ship type originated from the 17th century Netherlands, with a rounded bow and aft. It was suitable for shallow coastal waters. Many variations in size and rigging were built. The one shown here is one of the larger galiots. They were built in the Netherlands and at the German North Sea and the Baltic Sea coast. The galiots had a large hold, simple handling of the sails and low draft. The draft was crucial for the shallow waters in the Vistula Lagoon and the Elbing River. These ships were to be used not only for overseas journeys but also for going up river estuaries. Galiots were capable of doing so.

The galiot model, photos, description and dimensions

The model was built to plans of Gerhard Salemke ("Galiot von 1738 - Die Stadt Elbing", Sonderheft der Zeitschrift Das Logbuch, 1977, Arbeitskreis historischer Schiffbau e.V.), to photos of an identical model in the Deutsches Schiffahrtsmuseum and to the copperplate engraving of Johann Friedrich Endersch.
The ship model was built with the sails set like the ship being on starboard tack in quartering wind. The fore sail and main sail are clewed up to allow for a better view on the upper deck. Please take your time to have a good look at the set of photos. There are several views of the entire ship model taken from all directions, and several closer views of hull, deck and rigging. If you click on a photo you will get that photo in high resolution. Only these high resolution photographs show how much work and handicraft ability were put in the model.

Viewing the high resolution photos: If you use Microsoft Internet Explorer or Firefox, press F11 to minimize navigation bars and have a larger screen with the photos. The high resolution photos are about 12 megapixel. So they are about 5 - 15 times larger than your 0.8 - 2 megapixel computer screen. Most browsers by default downsize the pictures to screen size, so you cannot see all the details of the ship models. To see the original resolution move the mouse over the pictures and click on the magnifying lens.

There are two stands for the model. One is a larger stand tightly fitting to the frames, the other is two wedges of ebony held by a thin stripe of aluminum sheet. The photos shown here were taken with both stands.

This model of the galiot Stadt Elbing is a beautiful true masterpiece. Hull and rigging are worked out in very detail. The ship model is 1 : 50 scale. Length is 82 cm, width 20 cm, height 67 cm.
The ship can be taken out of the stands, i.e. for transport.
nthusiasts and model makers enjoy the photos and maybe get ideas or some guidance, if someone builds such a model by himself.