PKEHlfeTORIC NAVAL ARCIIITECTUKE. 531 



tially painted' in the bow, apparently to facilitate tlie recognition of 

 tlie direction taken by a vessel m sii^iit.^ 



The war vessels do not appear to have had full decks, from the fact 

 that the mast had to be taken down before the battle; ])artial decks 

 appear in the bow and in the stern; the midship was open, but some 

 representations from the eightli century b. c.^ show small bridges or 

 gangways (plankways) on both sides of the mast, extending from the 

 fore end to the aft end, partly covering the ship and forming a bridge 

 upon which the fighting crew stood. A narrow plank fastened to the 

 i uside of the ship's wall also served a similar ])urpose. Even at Ct^sar's 

 time completely covered vessels w«ne not in general use,-* and even 

 those called " decked '' did not have what is now called " a deck,""' 



Before the battle the mast, which rested in a block ui)on the keel, had 

 to be laid down,« and for this purpose a snmll longitudinal opening had 

 to be left. It was the custom to ])enetrate the enemy's line in full force 

 in order to dislocate his oars. To thus reiuler his ship defenseless to 

 the spur thrusts, the oars of the attacking party had to be drawn in at 

 the decisive moment so as to prevent their being broken. I n order to ac- 

 complish this the small width of a decked ship would have been insuffi- 

 cient, while a broken deck afforded ready egress above. 



The peculiar method of naval warfare, consisting principally in an 

 effort to disable tlie enemy's ship by ramming, required a resistance 

 scarcely to be found in the comparatively slight-built ships of anticpiity, 

 and special precautions had to be taken to secure, by means of addi' 

 tional devices and appliances, the longitudinal strengthening of tlie 

 otherwise rather frail structure. Such appliances were the strut-frame 

 and the girding. The former was first demonstrated^ as consisting of 

 two long beams, which, resting upon numerous supports, connccted'the 

 two frames in such a manner as to leave a longitudinal opening for the 

 raising and lowering of the mast. These beams, by covering them with 

 planks, were converted into foot bridges for the fighting crew « 



One of the principal dangers to which the ship of anticpiity was ex- 

 posed, and which threatened collapse to the frail structure was from the 

 breaking of the back,« which was apt to happen in a vessel crossin.- 

 tlie waves, whereby the midship was lifted in the mass of water, while 

 t le prows, without any support, hanging over the tumgh, were 'apt to 

 sink by their own weight and thus tend to break from the keel. In 



' niiimiirr : Tefhiiologie, vol. iv, p. 4r)3. 



- HHhif, : Da,s hoiiierisclie Epos a.is den Deukmalern erliiutert, p, 161 note 1 



• Monumouti doll Inst, ix., pi. 40, 3 and 4 ; Anuali 1872, p. 153. 



'<'<vmr: De be), civ. iii, 7; Ckxro: Ad Attic, v, 12, 13. 

 "A-sfimann: Seewesen, p. 1G07. 



'^Ass>„a,n,: 8eowesen, p. 1616; Brcsiiuj: Nautik dor Alten, p. 48; J)ro„,cM: Griech 

 Kricgsaltertliimier, p. 289; ./«/; Archcol. Nav. I, 288. 

 '' Jssmann : .Seewesen, p. 1602. 

 « Ibid, p. 1604. 

 ^ Brctisiiifi: Nautik der Alten, p. 183. 



