Ships Through the Ages: Pirate Dhow, Spanish or Venetian Galley, Spanish Galleon

King, Frederic Leonard, 1879-1947 · 1934–1935

Pirate Dhow: This is a typical 16th-century dhow, a grab-built, lateen-rigged vessel of Arabia, the Mediterranean, and the Indian Ocean. It has the usual long overhang forward, high poop deck, and open waist. The dhow was notorious in the slave trade on the east coast of Africa, and even after a thousand years is still one of the swiftest of sailing vessels. / Spanish or Venetian Galley: These 16th-century galleys were highly decorated with flying flags and intricately carved ornamentation that covered the poop deck and the stern. However, the poor conditions for the slaves that occupied the ships belied the beautiful exterior. The galleys were often a substitute for the gallows and they were frequently used as punishment. / Spanish Galleon: Galleons were usually "treasure ships," and have a romantic history of pirates, adventure, and conquest in popular culture.