Old Ship Figure-Heads and Sterns (Dover Pictorial Archives) [Paperback]

L. G. Carr Laughton (Author)

Book Description

Series: Dover Pictorial Archives | Publication Date: December 8, 2011

A well-illustrated look at shipboard ornamentation through the ages — from charging ram heads on ancient Greek and Roman war-galleys, saints on horseback, and allegorical portrayals of royalty to vintage Elizabethan galleons and Lord Nelson's Victory, built in 1765. Over 420 royalty-free illustrations also depict escutcheons, lanterns, rails, gun ports, and other decorative elements.

Product Details

• Paperback: 352 pages
• Publisher: Dover Publications (December 8, 2011)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0486415333
• ISBN-13: 978-0486415338
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.4 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1.3 pounds
• Average Customer Review: 4.3 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #1,149,994 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Good fundamental data overview, July 5, 2009

By 

Walter P. Sinnott III (Houston, texas) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Old Ship Figure-Heads and Sterns (Dover Pictorial Archives) (Paperback)

I liked it. This book was written back in the 1920's, ergo the author was much closer in time to the age of sail. In the 20's a book with a handful of pictures was considered lavishly illustrated. Much information back then was conveyed in line drawings, in some ways much superior to the visual bombardment of a photograph. The first time I read it the book was a bit hard to follow. The second time I slowed down and really absorbed what the author was conveying. Doing so the book makes much more sense informationally.

In essence the author describes general decorative design trends. I came away with the understanding that, decoratively speaking, it is difficult the precisely date any given feature. There was quite a bit of overlap regarding vessels in service with respect to vessel age. Additionally, any changes in ship design were embraced by the builders rather slowly. So, if one is intent upon determining if, for instance, that gun port wreaths vanished at a specific date, you will learn that they died out slowly as vessels aged and went out of srvice. Of course the infamous 1703 order does impact subsequent ship decorative allowances.

As the book spans sveral centuries it was not possible to provide comprehensive detail regarding specific ships other than as references for particular details. To extensivly detail individual ships would require a catalog of ships, which would quite probably collapse our bookshelves.

I found the detailed drawings delightfully informative. In general the author displays a comprehensive knowledge of shipboard decoration spanning several centuries. Today we would be hardpressed to find anyone as well versed.

For ship modeling this book made me realize that I am able to enjoy some latitude in decoration decisions, a luxury steel ship models do not get to enjoy. Your dollars will be well spent on this publication, provided you really take the time to grasp what the author is delivering.

5.0 out of 5 stars An Excellent Edition from Dover, January 12, 2012

By 

Theseus "theseus" (US of A) - See all my reviews

This review is from: Old Ship Figure-Heads and Sterns (Dover Pictorial Archives) (Paperback)

This is a surprisingly satisfying edition from Dover Press.

Dover has long been the leader in cheap editions of older books, but it has entered the 2010's with a renewed emphasis on the graphic -- larger formats, better printing, and a committment to better illustrations.

In this instance, Dover has produced the book in a larger format than is normally seen with a facsimile edition that reproduces the 1925 Halston edition. In addition to the line drawings in the text, there are 55 monochrome plates on glossy paper and two pages of color images.

As far as Laughton's book goes, it remains was and remains a classic text in the field.

2 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars Dissapointing, June 11, 2007

By 

J. Henson "Many Interests" (SC) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Old Ship Figure-Heads and Sterns (Dover Pictorial Archives) (Paperback)

While the book covers the general topic, I was disappointed that it lacked even mention of numerous more historically well know ship figureheads. Being a ship modeler the book appeared from the description that it would give a wider view of figurehead history, but is seemed a bit thin on content. Images were poor which is understandable in some cases due to their age, but the book did not live up to my expectations.