Overview

The world's first war machines were ships built two millennia before the dawn of the Classical world. Their influence on the course of history cannot be overstated. A wide variety of galleys and other types of warships were built by successive civilisations, each with their own distinctive appearance, capability and utility. The earliest of these were the Punt ships and the war galleys of Egypt which defeated the Sea People in the first known naval battle. Following the fall of these civilisations, the Phoenicians built biremes and other vessels, while in Greece the ships described in detail in the 'Trojan' epics established a tradition of warship building culminating in the pentekonters and triaconters. The warships of the period are abundantly illustrated on pottery and carved seals, and depicted in inscriptions and on bas-reliefs. The subject has been intensively studied for two and a half millennia, culminating in the contemporary works of authoritative scholars such as Morrison, Wallinga, Rodgers and Casson. To date there are no works covering the subject which are accessible and available to non-academics.

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9781849089784

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Reviews

Author Adrian Wood has done considerable research as he tells the tale of the development of these vessels from multi-purpose ships until we get the first purpose built war ships to where carrying stuff was secondary to the mission. Researching ship design of this time is not an easy task and we have to grab snippets of information from the writings of the time as well as from what is presented on pottery as well as any wall paintings or remaining fragments. However, a cohesive story is told and is one that is fascinating to anyone interested in the nautical world. Enhanced by images of artifacts and the excellent illustrations of Giuseppe Rava, we can see how ship development went forward over the 2500 years covered by this edition. It is a book that is both fun to read and interesting. <br>--Scott Van Aken, www.modelingmadness.com (February 2013)

Author Adrian Wood has done considerable research as he tells the tale of the development of these vessels from multi-purpose ships until we get the first purpose built war ships to where carrying stuff was secondary to the mission. Researching ship design of this time is not an easy task and we have to grab snippets of information from the writings of the time as well as from what is presented on pottery as well as any wall paintings or remaining fragments. However, a cohesive story is told and is one that is fascinating to anyone interested in the nautical world. Enhanced by images of artifacts and the excellent illustrations of Giuseppe Rava, we can see how ship development went forward over the 2500 years covered by this edition. It is a book that is both fun to read and interesting. <br>--Scott Van Aken, www.modelingmadness.com (February 2013)<br><br> The first book covering the subject of ancient warships that is available to and accessible by non-academics, this book features full-color artwork and illustrations, as well as cut-away art. It details the design, development, operation and history of this ancient machinery. <br>- Model Retailer (May 2013)

[...] a fascinating insight to the warships of long ago. - Stuart Asquith

Author Information

Adrian’s fascination with ancient history began with a gift of toy Roman soldiers at the age of four, and continued through his Honours degree in Ancient History and Classical Archaeology at Sheffield University. Having been previously employed as a professional musician, lead caster, motorcycle courier, and fork-lift driver, Adrian currently works in isotope geoscience. In addition to reading and writing about ancient warfare, he maintains an active interest in music, dogs and all manner of games. Giuseppe Rava was born in Faenza in 1963, and took an interest in all things military from an early age. Entirely self-taught, Giuseppe has established himself as a leading military history artist, and is inspired by the works of the great military artists, such as Detaille, Meissonier, Röchling, Lady Butler, Ottenfeld and Angus McBride. He lives and works in Italy. For more on Giuseppe, please visit his website at www.g-rava.it

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