Vespucci (1480)
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| Ship data | ||
| Surname: | Vespucci | |
| Launching ( ship christening ): | around 1480 | |
| Crew: | 86 sailors | |
| Technical specifications | ||
| Type: | Three-masted carrack | |
| Length over all: | 34.90 m | |
| Width: | approx. 5.87 m | |
| Drive: | sail | |
| Displacement : | approx. 468 t | |
| Draft: | 4.65 m | |
The Vespucci is a ship of discovery from the 15th or 16th century that sailed under the flag of Castile and with which Amerigo Vespucci was one of the first travelers to arrive in America. Since the authenticity of some documents of the time is being questioned, it is also questionable whether he actually owned a ship. The name of the ship has not been passed down.
construction
On the voyages in which Vespucci took part, according to available sources, three-masted carracks were used, which in the present case were equipped with the following sails: foremast and mainmast were each covered with two square sails . The mizzen mast was equipped with a latin sail . On the forecastle was a bow fort that protruded over the bow; a stern fort was installed on the stern.
history
Vespucci explored the coast of Guyana for the Spanish king from May 16, 1499 to June 1500 . The discovery tour extended over the Amazon delta to about 100 km inland and finally along the coast to 6 ° 30 'south latitude.
From May 13, 1501 to October 1502, Vespucci undertook a second trip - this time on behalf of Portugal - to look for a passage along the South American continent that would make it possible to reach Asia. This journey took him up to 25 degrees south latitude.
According to unconfirmed sources, Vespucci is said to have made a third trip from May 1503 to June 1504. The ship is said to have run aground on a reef on the island of Fernando de Noronha off today's Brazil and sank ; Amerigo Vespucci allegedly managed to save himself by swimming.
literature
- Attilio Cucari: Sailing Ships - The Queens of the Seas, History and Typology . Bassermann, Munich 2008. Italian original edition: Velieri . Mondadori Electra SpA, Milan 2004
Individual evidence
- ↑ Cucari (see lit.) gave his reconstruction the name Vespucci , but gives no evidence for it.