Buy a puzzle, assemble it, and destroy its original box. Take the puzzle, go to a lake, throw the puzzle in the lake, and leave it for a few weeks. Return to the lake and try to rebuild the puzzle from the remaining pieces. Such is the challenge of the research goals presented on this abstract – the reconstruction of a Portuguese frigate, Santo Antonio de Tanná, from its submerged remains. This thesis focuses on the mechanisms of reconstructing the ship, including the thought process, new computer tools, and imagination required for an archaeologist to be a detective of lost eras. The main objective was to understand the construction of a late Seventeenth-century Portuguese frigate. Frigates were responsible for patrolling the seas, intercepting fastmoving vessels, re-supplying military trading stations, and protecting trade routes. The existence of Portuguese frigates was known from historical records, but Santo Antonio de Tanná is the only frigate identified in the archaeological record. As such, its reconstruction should enable scholars to better understand the actual capabilities of seventeenth century frigates.A particular challenge in this study was ascertaining the manner in which Santo Antonio de Tanná’s construction reflected the state of affairs of the Portuguese trade network. Although their construction methods were advanced, the Portuguese adopted a shipbuilding design that was not able to compete as well in the new conditions of a changing global context. This study clearly demonstrate that cargo capacity was given greater emphasis than either speed or maneuverability, illustrating the on-going necessity of the Portuguese to build military ships with cargo capacity sufficient for minimal trade, even at the expense of speed. These were just the first steps in terms of what could be learned from the reconstruction. The best method to understand the ship, a three-dimensional object, was to recreate it into a three-dimensional environment in order to create a more accurate model. The resulting model permitted research to extend beyond the limits of the individual line drawings through the added benefit of being able to calculate hydrodynamics, sailing characteristics, and other data based on the ship’s morphology.

Buy a puzzle, assemble it, and destroy its original box. Take the puzzle, go to a lake, throw the puzzle in the lake, and leave it for a few weeks. Return to the lake and try to rebuild the puzzle from the remaining pieces. Such is the challenge of the research goals presented on this abstract - the reconstruction of a Portuguese frigate, Santo Antonio de Tanná, from its submerged remains. This thesis focuses on the mechanisms of reconstructing the ship, including the thought process, new computer tools, and imagination required for an archaeologist to be a detective of lost eras. The main objective was to understand the construction of a late Seventeenth-century Portuguese frigate. Frigates were responsible for patrolling the seas, intercepting fastmoving vessels, re-supplying military trading stations, and protecting trade routes. The existence of Portuguese frigates was known from historical records, but Santo Antonio de Tanná is the only frigate identified in the archaeological record. As such, its reconstruction should enable scholars to better understand the actual capabilities of seventeenth century frigates. A particular challenge in this study was ascertaining the manner in which Santo Antonio de Tanná's construction reflected the state of affairs of the Portuguese trade network. Although their construction methods were advanced, the Portuguese adopted a shipbuilding design that was not able to compete as well in the new conditions of a changing global context. This study clearly demonstrate that cargo capacity was given greater emphasis than either speed or maneuverability, illustrating the on-going necessity of the Portuguese to build military ships with cargo capacity sufficient for minimal trade, even at the expense of speed. These were just the first steps in terms of what could be learned from the reconstruction. The best method to understand the ship, a three-dimensional object, was to recreate it into a three-dimensional environment in order to create a more accurate model. The resulting model permitted research to extend beyond the limits of the individual line drawings through the added benefit of being able to calculate hydrodynamics, sailing characteristics, and other data based on the ship's morphology.

An array of ship types was used during the European Age of Expansion (early 15th to early 17th centuries), but one vessel in particular emerges from the historical records as a harbinger of discovery: the caravel. The problem is that little is known about these popular ships of discovery, despite the fair amount of historical evidence that has been uncovered. How big were they? How many men did it take to operate such a vessel? What kind of sailing characteristics did they have? How and by whom were they designed? Where did they originate and how did they develop? These questions cannot be answered by looking at the historical accounts alone. For this reason, scholars must take another approach for learning about caravels by examining additional sources, namely ancient shipbuilding treatises, archaeological evidence, surviving archaic shipbuilding techniques, and iconographic representations from the past. Information gained from the available sources reveals many of the caravel’s characteristics through time. This ship type outclassed its contemporaries during the age of exploration because of its highly adaptive characteristics. These traits were, principally, its shallow draught, speed, maneuverability, and ability to sail close to the wind. This combination of attributes made the caravel the ideal ship for reconnaissance along the rocky African coastline, as well as for making the transatlantic voyages to the New World. It was built in a Mediterranean way during its post-medieval phases, a method that still survives in some parts of the world today. During the Age of Discovery (ca. 1430 to 1530), the caravel sat low in the water, had one sterncastle, and was either lateen-rigged or had a combination of square and lateen sails. This vessel reflects the advanced shipbuilding technology that existed in Europe at this time, and played and important role in the voyages which allowed the Europeans to expand their territories around the world. The results of the studies presented in this thesis provide a history and development of the caravel, which was gradual and often obscure. What has been gained from this work is a body of information that can be applied to other studies about ancient seafaring, and can serve as a starting point for further research.

An array of ship types was used during the European Age of Expansion (early 15th to early 17th centuries), but one vessel in particular emerges from the historical records as a harbinger of discovery: the caravel. The problem is that little is known about these popular ships of discovery, despite the fair amount of historical evidence that has been uncovered. How big were they? How many men did it take to operate such a vessel? What kind of sailing characteristics did they have? How and by whom were they designed? Where did they originate and how did they develop? These questions cannot be answered by looking at the historical accounts alone. For this reason, scholars must take another approach for learning about caravels by examining additional sources, namely ancient shipbuilding treatises, archaeological evidence, surviving archaic shipbuilding techniques, and iconographic representations from the past. Information gained from the available sources reveals many of the caravel’s characteristics through time. This ship type outclassed its contemporaries during the age of exploration because of its highly adaptive characteristics. These traits were, principally, its shallow draught, speed, maneuverability, and ability to sail close to the wind. This combination of attributes made the caravel the ideal ship for reconnaissance along the rocky African coastline, as well as for making the transatlantic voyages to the New World. It was built in a Mediterranean way during its post-medieval phases, a method that still survives in some parts of the world today. During the Age of Discovery (ca. 1430 to 1530), the caravel sat low in the water, had one sterncastle, and was either lateen-rigged or had a combination of square and lateen sails. This vessel reflects the advanced shipbuilding technology that existed in Europe at this time, and played and important role in the voyages which allowed the Europeans to expand their territories around the world. The results of the studies presented in this thesis provide a history and development of the caravel, which was gradual and often obscure. What has been gained from this work is a body of information that can be applied to other studies about ancient seafaring, and can serve as a starting point for further research.