Are these the 8 most beautiful classic sailing yachts of all time?
By: No Author Indicated (BOAT INTERNATIONAL)
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
Are these the 8 most beautiful classic sailing yachts of all time?
.
Moonbeam of Fife III, 1903
The 30 metre, gaff cutter Moonbeam of Fife III epitomises beautiful classic yachts at their finest. Launched in 1903, Moonbeam of Fife is still going strong on the classic yacht regatta circuit despite being more than a hundred years old. The William Fife-designed yacht is constructed in wood with an oak hull and superstructure, while her interior joinery is well-kept mahogany.
.
Tuiga, 1909
Built by the renowned William Fife shipyard in Fairlie on the Clyde estuary in Scotland, Tuiga was commissioned by the Duke of Medinaceli, a close friend of the King of Spain, Alfonso XIII, and has had 10 owners in 106 years. HSH Prince Albert II decided to buy her in 1995. Tuiga has been participating in classic yacht regattas ever since and is now the flagship of the Yacht Club de Monaco, crewed by YCM members.
.
Mariette, 1915
The classic 42 metre twin-masted schooner _ Mariette of 1915 _was built by Herreshoff in the United States 100 years ago. Age has not withered her, but Mariette of 1915 has undergone a few refits in the Pendennis yard at Falmouth in recent years: in 2010 and again in 2012 in preparation for the Pendennis Cup, in which she took first prize in the St Petroc Traditional Class as well as being crowned overall winner. In 2014 she returned to Falmouth once more for minor works.
.
Creole, 1927
.
Endeavour, 1934
Arguably the world’s most famous J Class, Endeavour was the British challenger in the 1934 America’s Cup , but was beaten by the Harold Vanderbilt-owned Rainbow . Endeavour was commissioned by Sir T.O.M. Sopwith, who was keen to ensure that this yacht was the most advanced design possible. With his experience designing aircraft, Sopwith applied aviation technology to Endeavour ’s rig and winches and spared nothing to make her the finest vessel of her day.
She swept through the British racing fleet and into the hearts of yachtsmen around the world, winning many races in her first season. Though she did not win the America's Cup she came closer to doing so than any other challenger.
Since 1934, she has often led a perilous existence, even being sold to a scrap merchant in 1947 only to be saved by another buyer hours before her demolition was due to begin. In 1984, American yachtswoman Elizabeth Meyer bought Endeavour and she was transformed and rebuilt by Royal Huisman. Endeavour sailed again on June 22, 1989, for the first time in 52 years.
.
Elena, 1910
In 1910, Morton Plant commissioned 55 metre Elena to be designed by American naval architect Nathanael Herreshoff, the so-called “Wizard of Bristol”, who made his name designing sailing yachts for America’s elite. Plant's brief was to the point: he wanted a schooner “that can win”.
Herreshoff gave Elena a slightly deeper keel than preceding designs of that time, lowering her centre of ballast, which improved her windward ability. Elena won most of her early races against the cream of the American schooner fleet and in 1928 came her crowning glory, victory in the Transatlantic Race. In 2009, she was rebuilt using the original plans for the first Elena.
.
Black Swan, 1899
Mariquita, 1911
Another beautiful classic yacht from Fife, Mariquita was launched in 1911. The 38.16 metre sailing yacht was designed and built for the industrialist Arthur Stothert. As part of the 19 metre Big Class racing that re-emerged in 1911, this gaff-rigged cutter is said to have inspired the J Class yachts that came after her.
She raced competitively against her brethren from 1911-1913, but by the 1950s, Mariquita was the last in the 19 metre class remaining. She was restored in 1991 and received a further refit in 2004. A star on the classic yacht racing scene,
No politics, no religion, no instagrams, and commentary must be civil. The ToS and the CoC will be enforced, and anything that the administrator deems to be offensive will be deleted. YouTubes, videos and images that the administrator is unable to open must be described and explained or they will be deleted.
Tags
Who is online
492 visitors
I confess to not being at all into sailboats, save for my favourite painting of all time, The Fighting Temeraire. Other than boarding sailboats that were moored, such as the USS Constitution when I was in Boston, and a yacht owned by an architect client of mine, and one other time with Rambling Jack Elliott when he explained to me the rigging on a three-mast ship moored at Toronto Harbour, and the very one time I actually was sailing for an afternoon with a friend in a small sailboat in Bal Harbour Bay at Miami.
My favourite painting of all time is The Fighting Temeraire, painted by J. M. W. Turner. I stood for at least a half hour admiring it in the National Gallery in London, England. A poll of the Brits was once taken that determined that The Fighting Temeraire was their favourite painting. For me, it is more than just a painting, it tells a story. The ship, that famously fought many battles, was at the end of its useful life and was being towed into harbour for the last time. The days of the sailing battle ships was over, as indicated by its being towed by a steam-powered vessel. The end of its day is reflected by the glorious sunset, the end of the day, in the background. Here it is....
Mysteries of the Universe - how did this article remain on the Front (Home) Page for so long without others' comments and only one vote up? Not my vote up, I never vote up my own seeds/articles or comments.
Just a wild guess--- but maybe because most of the other stuff is such such stupid, immature-- and frankly just plain WEIRD garbage?
Maybe not "most", however certainly some is, but the fault isn't necessarily the topic, but the manner of a lot of commentary.
Not amazing classic sailboats, but nice anyways.
Sailboat, Sydney Harbor (© G. Gam)
Sailboat near Pulau Langkawi, Malaysia (© G. Gam)
Good ones, GG. And here's my photo of one in the Ottawa River just behind the Canada Parliament buildings. A photo taken against the sun that wasn't good enough to be considered worth posting at a photo contest.
I've always loved boats. All sorts-- from canoes to rowboats (which I first got to use when I was a kid in summer camp in Vermont) to the one I bought with a roommate when I was in my 20s (my Sailfish which I've mentioned previously) ,,, to occasional rides on various other larger boats, both motorized and sail.
to occasional rides on various other larger boats, both motorized and sail.
Oh and I forgot to mention the "largest" boat I was ever on. Once I traveled to Europe on a "real" ocean liner-- The Groote Beer -- the smallest liner of The Holland American Line:
Groote Beer , originally the Victory ship Costa Rica Victory , was laid down on 22 March 1944, at the Permanente No. 1 yard at Richmond, California , and launched on 17 June 1944
Costa Rica Victory was used as troopship near the end of World War II operated by the American-Hawaiian Steamship Company .
Costa Rica Victory was sold for $1,005,431, to the Netherlands Government ( nl ) on 19 February 1947. She was used as a Dutch emigrant ship after World War II.
The ship was rebuilt in 1952, to accommodate approximately 800 passengers in a single class, with large dormitories outnumbering conventional cabins.
Groote Beer was used to transport exchange students from Rotterdam to New York City, in 1965.
In 1960, Groote Beer was transferred to the Trans-Ocean Steamship Co and in 1963, was sold to John Spyridon Latsis, Greece, and renamed the Marianna IV.[17]
Marianna IV continued in service until July 1966, when it collided with the sand dredger Pen Avon off the Isle of Wight. The voyage was cancelled and the ship went to Piraeus, where she was laid up and finally scrapped in June 1970, at Eleusis, Greece.[18]
I was a poor college student at the time. so I wanted to book the cheapest boat to Europe. I discovered The Groote Beer, but just missed out on the cheapest accomidation (large dormitories) so I got the next cheapest-- rooms with 6 beds. (I still remember the price-- $140 one way, New York harbour to Rotterdam!)
Couldn't find a really good photo of the ship-- here's one of the best one's I've found. (In the photo it looks larger than it was):
The only time I was ever on a cruise ship was to tour the moored Queen Mary at Long Beach, CA. However, I did take a dinner cruise down the Li River through the Karst mountains from Guilin to Yangshuo in Guanxi Province, and later with my wife on a dinner cruise on the Jialing and Yangze Rivers at Chongqing. Oh, an old friend who was a client had a 42 foot Chris Craft that my ex and I spent an afternoon aboard.
Hope the Atlantic wasn't too rough for your journey.
Going fishing on a boat was what I really enjoyed for a long time, but I never had a boat until I bought our lakeside home when I was in my 40s, and bought the outboard bowrider I've posted in photos on NT previously. I also bought a canoe and a kayak, and an inflatable, all of which brought me and my family a lot of recreational pleasure, and a lot of fresh caught bass for lunches.