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The Art and Archaeology of Venetian Ships and Boats (S. N. Arch)

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Family of 4 killed in Ohio plane crash.

BUCYRUS, Ohio - A plane crashed in a field, killing four members of a Texas family and raining debris on a nearby apartment complex, authorities said.

No injuries were reported on the ground after the crash Sunday evening about 60 miles north of Columbus, state highway patrol Lt. Tony Bradshaw said.

Paul and Lillian Martin, of Austin, Texas, and their two children had been visiting relatives in Oklahoma and was flying to Searsmont, Maine, where the couple owned property, the highway patrol said. All four were killed on impact.

The crash site is about a mile from the Bucyrus-Crawford County Airport. But there was no sign of a distress call or any contact with air traffic control before the crash, Federal Aviation Administration spokeswoman Elizabeth Isham Cory said Monday.

Damage to the Indian Creek Apartments, the complex hit by debris, was minor, authorities said. Residents said they heard the plane's engine sputtering, followed by an explosion.

"When you're listening to something like that, you don't even think to take cover," resident Chris Beck said. "If it had gone a little further, it would have hit the apartments."

The cause of the crash was not immediately known. Light rain was reported in the area when the crash happened about 7:10 p.m. National Transportation Safety Board and FAA investigators were heading to the scene, Bradshaw said.

Authorities said Paul Martin was 49 and his wife 45, and identified their children as Kitanna, 10, and Shawn, 11. In Searsmont, Maine, town clerk Kathy Hoey said the Martins often spent time there during the summer. He was involved in marketing, and his wife was a marine archaeologist who wrote a book on Venetian ships, she said.

Rotund merchant ships. Sleek warships. Humble fishing boats and sturdy lighters. Pleasure craft and gondolas. The harbor of Medieval and Renaissance Venice thronged with watercraft. Ships and boats were unquestionably vital to the Venetian Maritime Republic, and her ships were of extreme importance historically. Venice, settled in the fifth century in the lagoons of the Adriatic Sea, was always a maritime nation. Three factors gave Venice advantages over other medieval trading city-states: the city's location, governmental policies, and the skills of her inhabitants. Nearly the entire population of Venice was involved in maritime trade in one way or another. Venice became a key trading agent between the European and Mediterranean world market and her citizens made a fortune. Many details as to the nature of their watercraft, however, have yet to be well understood. Three forms of evidence potentially fill in the void: archaeological remains of ships or boats, written documents concerning vessels, and artistic representations of watercraft. Remains of Venetian ships and boats are scant, and written records, rarely complete in their information. Excavations in the region have revealed only a few small boats, two merchant ships, and a galley, yet this limited sample of the ships and boats of Venice offers the base on which to build. A more accurate understanding of Venetian maritime history is achieved only through integrating all forms of evidence.

Pictorial documents constitute a unique corpus of data, invaluable information for anyone studying the history of ships and boats, yet these documents are rarely adequately studied. I had the pleasure of living and working in Venice with the goal of discovering and documenting maritime art from the region. Maritime themes prevail in the culture and legends important to the area. Ships and boats abound in Venetian mosaics, frescoes, paintings, sculptures, manuscript illuminations, technical treatises and graffiti. For example, the relics of St. Mark (who became patron saint and symbol of Venice) were "pirated" away from Alexandria, hidden from the Muslim customs officials in a basket of pork on board the ship. This story was frequently depicted in Venetian art, and these images show us what Venetians conceptualized when they thought of "a merchant ship". This book, with 158 illustrations, is full of interesting and beautiful maritime art, and offers intriguing details to ponder. The book appeals at one level to the layman interested in archaeology, ship history and art history, but has the substance (index, bibliography), detail and depth to satisfy the researcher.