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Description: | Scale: 1:17. A contemporary, realistically painted model of the schooner yacht America (1851) made entirely in wood with metal and organic material fittings. The hull has a very deep keel and a steeply raked bow and is painted a brass/copper coloured finish below the waterline. Above the waterline is a narrow white line which runs the entire length of the hull, as well as black painted upper parts. The bow terminates in a simple scroll figurehead. The bowsprit is rigged and there are two catheads on both the port and starboard sides rigged with cat blocks. The spritsail is rigged to a white painted boom. The foremast and mainmast are made from predominantly from unpainted wood although the tops been painted white, as have the mainmast's topmast and gaff boom. Both masts have their sails set and all the sails are realistically made up individual sail cloths of coarse off-white cotton. The sails are connected to the main and fore masts using fine brown painted wooden hoops. The unpainted deck has been scored to resemble planking. The deck fittings include a hatch cover, two skylights that can open, a capstan, a covered companion way hatch and a cockpit with a seat for the helmsman. The tiller has an elongated acorn-shaped finial and can be used to work the rudder. There are two roped rails on the port and starboard stern quarters. The model is displayed on a pair of decoratively shaped and ebonised wooden crutches connected by a single slat.
CA: AAA. It is known that this model was raced against the Alarm(SLR0725) on a pond in a recreation of the America?s Cup race. The rig is pure pilot schooner of its day, with a single large headsail and only a modest main topsail. As can be seen on the model, the masts were extremely raked, and the bowsprit was relatively small for the boat?s size (only a mere 17 feet outboard). The vessel measured 95 feet on deck, 23 feet at the beam, with a draught of 11 feet. Its displacement was 180 tons and the rig comprised 5,263 square feet of sail.
The America was built in New York in 1851 for John Stevens, commodore of the New York Yacht Club, by George Steers (1820-56) especially to race in English waters. On 22 August 1851, in a race round the Isle of Wight, it comfortably finished first to win a cup presented by the Royal Yacht Squadron. This trophy has been known ever since as the America?s Cup, becoming one of sailing?s most famous and prestigious international yacht races.
After being sold at the end of the 1851 season and later laid up at Cowes, Isle of Wight, it was largely rebuilt in 1858 and renamed Camilla. Returning to the United States, it was used in the Civil War (1861-65) for various purposes on the Confederate side. After being scuttled in the St John?s River, Florida, to escape capture, it was later raised and commissioned into the Federal Navy under the name of Memphis, later changed back to America. After the Civil War, it was sent to Annapolis as a training vessel for midshipmen, but in 1870 was re-commissioned as a yacht and took part in the America?s Cup of that year, finishing a respectable fourth. It was subsequently used as a cruising yacht and passed between several owners, before being crushed beyond repair in 1942 when the roof of its shed fell in under the weight of snow. The Museum has in its Collection an oil painting by John Fraser (1858-1927) of the America under full sail, see BHC3192.
caption: 'America', port � bow
caption: 'America', starboard broadside
caption: 'America', starboard stern quarter | Publisher: | "http://collections.rmg.co.uk/" | Rights holder: | "Royal Museums Greenwich" | Subjects: | America 1851 Greenwich Ship models : their purpose and development from 1650 to the present : illustrated from the ship model collection of the National Maritime Museum full hull ship models Yachting | Source: | Royal Museums Greenwich | Identifier: | http://collections.rmg.co.uk/collections... | Go to resource |
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