Came across a few sailing ship figureheads.

[George-CT]

Don't know why, but these have always caught my interest. All these old sailing ships are interesting. Between the workmen ship on them, and the beautiful rigging they are really eye catching. They come to the New London Sail fest yearly here in Connecticut. Each year we get different ones and you can go on them and roam about the decks and some in the rigging. The names of the different ships should show up in you pass our mouse over the picture. Most expand for better viewing. George-CT

Here is a little history on Figureheads. http://www.shipsonstamps.org/topics/html/gallion.htm

 

[Wayne in BC]

three females getting "keelhauled"
All kidding aside tho, they are very rare now and i have only ever seen one outside a movie. Those ships are fabulous George!

 

[Dan-MO]

Was an incredible artist. Are these all carved from wood? Amazing!

 

[Micheal_R]

The workmanship that it would take to create one... Only seen a couple in my day.

Thanks George.

Fair winds

Mikie

 

[George-CT]

were wood of some sort. Some look like they are metal but really hard to tell. If you look at his one, it looks like metal. Yet that looks like a wood aging crack both on the left and right running vertical. Or even perhaps where they pegged the wood together. These are bigger than they look. I had purchased one at and auction along with a big Marlin. When I got them home, neither would fit on my living room wall in the house I was I had at the time which was a high ceiling Victorian home down on the coastline. Long story short, I sold it to a bank in Waterford, Connecticut where it still is along with the Marlin. My x wife didn't tend to appreciate my taste in treasure. I'm sure her version would be they should have hung me on the wall with both items. But, on the bright side, its still there and its still her banking place. I'm sure it annoys her..... I never knew how big a stuffed marlin bill fish was until I had my own. The big sailfin, takes up a lot of wall space, then add in the bill and the tail, arch it, and you have a wall full of fish.


George-Ct

 

[Sunny]

n/t

 

[Royal]

I really have only been on one sailing boat from the old days and that was in Balitmore. It was the constilation, sister ship to the Constitution. I am still amazed at the cramped quarters and especially the gun deck. They had to be short little suckers back then.

I can not remember what it had for a figurehead though http://www.baygateways.net/general.cfm?id=117

 

[CebuNed]

George,

Last summer Margie and David and I spent the day at Mystic Village, CT. For those who don't know, Mystic is a big tourist attraction here on the shoreline in CT. It was an old whaling and shipping port. They have a number of very nice old restored sailing ships and tours. One museum George, thats all they have is a bunch of the old Figureheads. Very very nice place to spend the day, highly recommended, if you ever visit CT. friends.

Ned

 

[WillyP]

and you can board some of them. Here they call them the "Tall Ships". Some just sail to attend these
sort of functions, sort of as a history lesson for folks and some are actulaly working ships. Thanks for the
link. Very interesting,

 

[heyruh]

Great photos and I loved the figureheads. For all of you figurehead enthusiasts out there, check out the new website for Eight Bells Carving, a figurehead making business on Nantucket, Island MA. Nantucket has a rich history of whaling ships and figureheads. My mom (Dinah) and I are trying to bring back the lost art of ships figurehead making. www.eightbellscarving.com We make figureheads of all sizes...though they don't go on ships anymore, they go on homes. Enjoy!