Nautical Research Journal 149
Figure 42. Figure 41.
were cut from brass sheet and riveted to the arms with iron pins. (Figure 35, right) Once the metalwork was painted black and given several coats of satin fi nish, the crosspieces were sandwiched around the shank, pinned with treenails and banded with strips of narrow brass. T e scale fi gure gives some idea of the size of anchors for even a medium-size ship like Queen Anne’s Revenge. (Figure 36)
T e largest, the best bower anchor, was mounted on the port side, paired with the smallest. I made up a large triple block, which was rove to the cathead, with a large hook bent from blackened brass rod to catch the anchor ring. T e anchor cable was turned into the anchor ring with a seized clinch knot, with a similar clinched line supporting the shank from a timberhead. T ese lines were soaked with water and diluted white glue, then weighted with clips until the glue stiff ened, giving them the appearance of weight. T e fl uke hooked onto the channel as if to take up the rest of the weight. A buoy was tied to the arms of the anchor with a clove hitch and seized to the shank, its coil of line hung in the shrouds. (Figure 37)
T e stern lantern was the next small detail to add. It was in the round French fashion, rather than the hexagonal English style, as drawn by Boudriot, but, since it was tilted it was not really round, so it
could not simply be turned to shape. Instead, I used Sculpey, a clay that is hardened by baking in an oven. Aſt er shaping it to the basic form by hand it was hardened, cooled, then refi ned and smoothed by sanding. A brass rod was inserted for convenience in holding and shaping. (Figure 38, upper leſt ) A fl uted cap was carved from cherry, with a small turned fi nial on top. T e framework for the glass was made from thin strips of cherry which were wet-bent around the form and glued to it. (Figure 38, upper right) T e horizontal bands were built up from individually cut and fi tted cherry pieces. (Figure 38, lower leſt ) A bottom cap and drop were carved and the wood stained. (Figure 38, lower right) Brass rod was bent and soldered together to form a cross-shaped bracket that was blackened and glued into the lantern. T is was set into holes drilled into the transom so the lantern sat securely but at a jaunty angle. To set them off I simulated the panes of glass with several coats of clear gloss varnish. (Figure 39)
T e fi nal detail for the ship was Blackbeards’s signature fl ag. Although no one truly knows what his fl ag looked like, on the Internet is one called the Blackbeard fl ag, depicting a demon holding a glass in one hand and a spear in the other, aimed at a red heart with three red dots in the lower corner. T is was downloaded and imported it into my computer. Using Photoshop I resized it, then used the skew function to bring down the lower corner of the fl ag. T is helps it to hang more naturally without a buildup of material. T is image was copied and
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