PREHISTORIC NAVAL ARCHITECTURE. 



539 



SO as to form a ledge to receive a board, which may have been the pareut 

 of the Inter forecastle, and which in part served to close the hole on its 

 open side. 



Upon the sides of the stem two round holes had existed, which were 

 closed by means of large circular plugs rounded off on the outer face 

 ill the form of a boss driven in after the manner <»f bungs in barrels. 

 The holes may have been designed to represent the eyes of the warship 

 {(xpi'iuAfjAii)^ which, as dr.DTfx'i-a'.a in ancient Greek war-vessels, are sui)- 

 posed to be the symbolic signiticance of precaution against dangers 

 threatening tlie ship. It is, however, probable tliat at that point the 

 tree sent out two arms, which were dressed inside and closed up in the 

 manner described, the holes showing the grain of the wood running in 

 the direction of the branches, which of course could not possibly be the 

 case had they been pierced artiticially. 



The bottom is tlat throughout the entire length; the keel, if it may 

 so be called, at the stern, is splitting, possibly owing to the great strain, 

 to which it was subjected in the course of removal, or to shrinkage. 



Fig. 28. 



OVERHANGIXO CorNTEE. 



(Drawing fiiriiished liy Mr. Sltvensd 



Fig. 29. 

 Face of Stern in Beigg Boat. 



(From report oLIujiip!- Thropp. ) 



The floor is perfectly flat, but in excavating transverse stays were 

 allowed to stand at intervals at right angles to the sides, crossing the 

 bottom athwart ship. Of these ribs, which take the place of floor- 

 timbers in modern craft and are intended to stiffen the structure, three 

 remain in perfect condition. Additional strength is given to stem and 

 stern by allowing a greater thickness of solid wf»od to remain in shap- 

 ing the inside. of the boat. 



The sides are hewn quite perpendicular; at the stern they are cut 

 obliquely, so as to form an overhanging counter (Fig. 28). 



As previously stated, the butt end of the tree formed the stern end 

 of the boat, ajid here, probably on account of the decayed condition of 

 the interior close to the roots, a natural stern could not be provided, 

 and a plank end was adopted, which was fitted to a groove cut down 

 on each side and across the bottom some distance from the end of the 

 tree (Fig. 29). The sides projecting beyond the plank end were cut ob- 

 liquely up from the bottom and a hole was pierced at each extremity 

 through which probably ropes or thongs were tightly drawn, or sticks 



