"Mayflower" sailship of brass (antique brass finished). 10x10x4cm.
The Mayflower transported the Pilgrims from Plymouth, England, to Plymouth Colony, Massachusetts, in what would become the United States, in 1620. It left Plymouth on September 6 and dropped anchor near Cape Cod on November 11 (both dates according to the Old Style, the Julian Calendar). This voyage was inspired by the successful establishment of the first permanent English settlement, Jamestown, by the London Company of Virginia in 1607.
The Mayflower was used as a cargo ship, trading (often in wine) between England and other European countries, principally France, but also Norway, Germany, and Spain. At least between 1609 and 1622, it was mastered by Christopher Jones, who was Captain on the transatlantic voyage, and based in Rotherhithe, London, England. It is likely that the ship was broken up for scrap lumber in Rotherhithe in 1623, the year after Jones's death. The Mayflower Barn, just outside the Quaker village of Jordans, in Buckinghamshire, England, is said to be built from these timbers.
The ship likely had a crew of 25-30; however, only the names of five of these are known including one, John Alden, who chose to stay in Plymouth.
Details of the ship's dimensions are unknown; but estimates based on its load weight and the usual size of 180-ton merchant ships in the period give her a length of 90110 feet (27.433.5 m) and a width of about 25 feet (7.6 m). Careful research went into designing a replica, the Mayflower II (launched September 22, 1956), to make it resemble its namesake as closely as possible.
(Information from Wikipedia)
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