MARINE ART - FIGURE HEADS

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A ship often has an elaborate figure carved from wood - normally a maiden - attached to the bows or prow of the vessel to bring good luck to the ship and its voyages and act as a guiding hand and inspiration to the crew.  

Every now and then the artists who carved these worlds produced something rather special.  It is a shame this particular skill goes largely un-noticed - the exquisite works shown on our pages rarely feature the name or history of the artist

Angel theme figurehead - follow the progress of our 

figurehead as Solar Lady develops

Featured on this page is a figurehead carved from an unidentified wood in sections, now preserved for posterity and captured on film by Nelson Kruschandl during his visit to the Maritime Museum in Paris, France 2003.

The message and inspiration for our figurehead will be provided by Christina Dusart and Annie Brettell, the aim being for Solar Lady to reflect both the traditional and modern aspects of our stated aims.  If you are interested in contributing to our project please contact Nelson.  In return for your help we will be pleased to feature your work or advertise your exhibition(s).

• EXOTIC TEAK WOOD -  FIGUREHEAD

• LINK TO CUTTY SARK - FIGUREHEAD

• LINK TO HMS VICTORY - FIGUREHEAD

• LINK TO HMS WARRIOR - FIGUREHEAD

• CLEOPATRA - QUEEN OF EGYPT

• KYLIE MINOGUE - QUEEN OF POP

• ROLLS ROYCE - FLYING LADY

A figurehead is usually a carved wooden decoration, most often female or bestial, found at the prow of ships of the 16th to the 19th century and in ancient times. The practice was introduced with the galleons of the 16th century, as although earlier ships had often had some form of bow ornamentation, the figurehead as such could not come into being until ships had an actual head structure upon which to place it.

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 1700s, 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 '60s customarily had full figureheads, but these were relatively small and light.

Figureheads as such died out with the sailing ship. Early steamships, however, did sometimes have gilt scroll-work and coats-of-arms at their bows. This practice lasted up until about World War I. The 1910 German liner SS Imperator originally sported a large bronze figurehead of an eagle (the Imperial German symbol) standing on a globe. The few extra feet of length added by the figurehead made the Imperator the longest ship in the world at the time of her launch.

It is still common practice for warships to carry metal badges somewhere on their superstructure which, like figureheads, relate to the ship's name- for example Type 42 Destroyers of the Royal Navy, which are named after British cities, carry badges depicting the coat of arms of their namesake.

In Germany, Belgium, and Holland, it was once believed that spirits/faeries called Klaboutermannikins (water mannikins) dwelt in the figureheads. The spirit guarded the ship from sickness, rocks, storms, and dangerous winds. If the ship sank, the Klaboutermannikin guided the sailors' souls to the Land of the Dead. To sink without a Klaboutermannikin condemned the sailor's soul to haunt the sea forever, so Dutch sailors believed.

LINKS

http://www.figureheads.co.uk/

Richard Hunter
Figurehead Historian

15 Aughton Avenue,
Aughton, SHEFFIELD,
South Yorkshire, S26 3XB
United Kingdom.

Telephone/Fax: 0044 (0) 114 287 3465

http://www.jpuwoodcarver.com/

J.P. URANKER WOODCARVER
All rights reserved, 2000-2006
P.O. Box 1393, 179 County Road, Oak Bluffs, MA 02557 Tel: (508) 693-5871
e-mail:  jpuranker@jpuwoodcarver.com

http://www.maritimawoodcarving.co.uk/

MARITIMA
76 Mathews Way, Stroud, Gloucestershire, GL5 4EB
England.
Tel/Fax: +44 (0)1453 756716 Mobile: +44 (0)7836 323431
andy@maritimawoodcarving.co.uk

http://www.hartmann-designs.de/

Hartmanndesign@aol.com

This website is Copyright © 1999 & 2007  NJK.   The bird logo and name Solar Navigator are trademarks. All rights reserved.  All other trademarks are hereby acknowledged.       Max Energy Limited is an environmental educational charity.

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