The ships of Abel Tasman

About this book

As described in his preserved extract-journal, Abel Tasman had two ships under his command during his memorable voyage to the mysterious 'Southland' in 1642: the yacht 'Heemskerck' and the fluyt 'Zeehaen'. According to historian Peter Sigmond, head of the department of Dutch History of the Amsterdam Rijksmuseum, these ships can be placed in the same rank as ships like the 'Santa Maria', the 'Golden Hind' and the 'Endeavour'. Ab Hoving, head of the restoration department working for Sigmond, built models of these ships. Cor Emke has recorded the entire (experimental) building process on cad drawings. These drawings are not only printed but also recorded on cd-rom. This cd-rom enables the model builder to examine and print each part of the ship in a scale selected by himself. In the book to which the cd-rom belongs, Peter Sigmond describes the historical background of Tasman's expedition. Original illustrations from Tasman's journal, and paintings and pictures of yachts and fluyts illustrate the narrative. The book also offers an analysis of seventeenth-century shipbuilding; an account of how the models were built; a typology of the ships Tasman sailed with and a lot of information from which anyone interested can make his own choice in order to construct his model.