Posted September 1, 20195 yr Not really a pirate ship, but a ship nonetheless. From Wiki A dromon (from Greek δρόμων, dromōn, "runner") was a type of galley and the most important warship of the Byzantine navy from the 5th to 12th centuries AD, when they were succeeded by Italian-style galleys. It was developed from the ancient liburnian, which was the mainstay of the Roman navy during the Empire.
September 1, 20195 yr Something diffefent from another era, really like that one. Do yiu have more pictures, from different angles?
September 2, 20195 yr Wow! Yes, this is certainly different... I like it though. Could you imagine how hard it would be to coordinate the double-decker rowing situation? Seems like you'd have to have someone there cracking the whip on everybody. Good work! MAC
September 12, 20195 yr Author On 9/1/2019 at 6:46 PM, DonRamon1981 said: Something diffefent from another era, really like that one. Do yiu have more pictures, from different angles? Yes and with some explanation as well. On a Dromon the ram found on earlier galleys was replaced by a ”spear”. On the bow, there was an elevated platform with the weapon known as “greek fire”. Behind the platform is a windlass, which has similar purposes as the (later) capstan. The deckspace below and above the upper and lower rowers respectively, is a grid/lattice. This is makes it possible for the rowing soldiers to coordinate the rowing action. On 9/2/2019 at 4:48 PM, iammac said: Wow! Yes, this is certainly different... I like it though. Could you imagine how hard it would be to coordinate the double-decker rowing situation? Seems like you'd have to have someone there cracking the whip on everybody. Good work! MAC On a sidenote: Galley slaves was a rarity. Not even the Romans used them and not at all on a war galley. Professional rowers or soldiers operated the oars and participated in fighting the enemy when boarding. ...But -Ben Hur-. Yep that is Hollywood for ya. I "knew" about galley slaves before researching the ships as well. Aft. The Dromon looked similar to older galleys. On later Italian style galleys, a rudder would replace the steering oars. The elevated platforms on the side are a distinct dromon feature. Other versions usually have higher platforms or even an elaborate castle centered in the middle. I found that this made the ship potentially very heavy and/or compromising the use of sails. Not really fitting a shiptype named “runner”. Edited September 12, 20195 yr by Anders T
September 14, 20195 yr Wow, very cool! As far as I can tell this one is to scale and historically correct - impressive! Something you could put in a museum, well done.
September 15, 20195 yr Author On 9/14/2019 at 10:22 PM, Darnok said: Wow, very cool! As far as I can tell this one is to scale and historically correct - impressive! Something you could put in a museum, well done. Thanks, historical and scale accuracy is indeed some of the goals I have in designing ship models such as this one. Reading your comment, I realize that I omitted some information that I usually give at the start of a topic. Therefore, here comes a somewhat late introduction. This model resembles a Byzantine Dromon. It is in minifig-scale or 1:40’ish. The model will have the dimension Length: 93 cm, Height: 43 cm (with stand), Width: 37 cm (with oars) There is approx. 4350 bricks in the model. For reference, I have used several models, paintings, drawings and descriptions of the type.
November 16, 20195 yr Yay to the glorious Byzantine navy! Regarding greek fire, you should add a siphon-like tube in her bow as that's how it is believed it was administered (presurized most probably). You've even used purple, denoting that this ship was administered directly by someone of the High Court of Constantinople as purple was the royal color and was banned by others to use. Edited November 16, 20195 yr by blackdeathgr
November 17, 20195 yr Author On 11/16/2019 at 6:26 PM, blackdeathgr said: Yay to the glorious Byzantine navy! Regarding greek fire, you should add a siphon-like tube in her bow as that's how it is believed it was administered (presurized most probably). You've even used purple, denoting that this ship was administered directly by someone of the High Court of Constantinople as purple was the royal color and was banned by others to use. Greek fire… Oh! It is there. Notice the boxy thing just behind the forecastle. I even made something that was meant to look like a pump of sorts, pipe connected to the front and then a nozzle at the very front. The platforms on the side could also have Greek fire, but some sources only describe them as intended for archers, besides they should be lighter than the forecastle to avoid compromising stability. Color… Glad to see that someone is geekying away on the color schemes as well. You are right the purple was an exclusive color. On some of the other medieval ships, I have used colors chosen for their heraldic significance.
November 24, 20195 yr On 11/17/2019 at 4:56 PM, Anders T said: Oh! It is there. Notice the boxy thing just behind the forecastle. I even made something that was meant to look like a pump of sorts, pipe connected to the front and then a nozzle at the very front. Sweet! Didn't notice it! Moar photos plz Edited November 24, 20195 yr by blackdeathgr
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