T e top in French ships of the day was a fl at, round platform without a raised lip, built up from a double layer of planks that were half-lapped into each other. Boudriot’s plan does not show a rim of any sort, which is also diff erent from English practice. T ere are a number of cleats radiating out from the center
for traction in a heaving ship. T is all sits on a pair of sturdy trestletrees with wider crosstrees let into them. (Figure 12)
T e platform was built up from strips of birch planking 6 millimeters wide. A long strip was topped
Figure 12. Adapted from Jean Boudriot, Le Mercure.
