File:Figurehead Alexander von Humboldt II (7871797904).jpg
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| Description |
A figurehead is a carved wooden decoration found at the prow of ships largely made between the 16th and 19th century. Although earlier ships had often had some form of bow ornamentation (e.g. the Viking ships of ca. A.D. 800–1100), the general practice was introduced with the galleons of the 16th century, as the figurehead as such could not come to be until ships had an actual head structure on which to place it.The menacing appearance of toothy and bug-eyed figureheads on Viking ships also had the protective function of warding off evil spirits. As with the stern ornamentation, the purpose of the figurehead was often to indicate the name of the ship in a non-literate society (albeit in a sometimes very convoluted manner); and always, in the case of naval ships, to demonstrate the wealth and might of the owner. At the height of the Baroque period, some ships of the line boasted gigantic figureheads, weighing several tons and sometimes twinned on both sides of the bowsprit. A large figurehead, being carved from massive wood and perched on the very foremost tip of the hull, adversely affected the sailing qualities of the ship. This, and cost considerations, led to figureheads being made dramatically smaller during the 18th century, and in some cases they were abolished altogether around 1800. After the Napoleonic wars they made something of a comeback, but were then often in the form of a small waist-up bust rather than the oversized full figures previously used. The clipper ships of the 1850s and 1860s customarily had full figureheads, but these were relatively small and light. |
| Date | |
| Source | Figurehead: Alexander von Humboldt II |
| Author | William Murphy from Dublin, Ireland |
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This image was originally posted to Flickr by infomatique at https://flickr.com/photos/80824546@N00/7871797904. It was reviewed on 17 May 2021 by FlickreviewR 2 and was confirmed to be licensed under the terms of the cc-by-sa-2.0. |
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| Date/Time | Thumbnail | Dimensions | User | Comment | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| current | 18:19, 17 May 2021 | | 4,592 × 2,576 (1.47 MB) | Flickr refugee (talk | contribs) | Transferred from Flickr via #flickr2commons |
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