Souvenir sheet of LATVIA 1997 - Joint Issue of Estonia, Latvia and Lithuania. Old Baltic Sailing Ships. MNH
ESTONIA - Maasilinna ship (16th century)
Maasilinna ship is one of the oldest shipwrecks found in Estonian waters. Its 10 m long and 5.5 m wide preserved part was found in 1985 in the waters of the outer raid of the Maasilinna (Sonebürg) Order Castle from the Väike Strait.
The Maasilinna ship, probably built around 1550, is the only surviving example of local Estonian shipbuilding art from the Middle Ages. The Maasilinna ship is distinguished from other ships of the same period by three features: double external planking, connection of the bow thruster and the keel by means of two pins, and a completely peculiar construction of the keel.
The surviving part of the ship has been preserved and is kept on the territory of the Orissaare Yacht Club. The Maasilinna ship can be seen in agreement with the Estonian Maritime Museum.
Designer: R. Matkiewicz.
LATVIA - The battleship "Das Wappen der Herzogin von Kurland" (17th century)
During the reign of Herzog Jakob (1642-82), shipbuilding flourished in the former Duchy of Courland. The ships were built in Ventspils and Kuldiga by German and Dutch masters invited by Duke Jakob, later by local shipbuilders. During the reign of Duke Jakob, ships of all types and sizes were built in Courland not only for local needs but also for England, France, Spain and other countries.
The largest warship, the liner "Das Wappen der Herzogin von Kurland", was built for the Duchy's own use on the model of the English liner "Sovereign of the Seas". It was a three-masted full-length sailboat with four decks armed with 72 cannons, served by 400 sailors and 100 soldiers.
Designer: E. Viliama.
LITHUANIA - Fishing boat in Kurena (16th-17th century)
Kurenas is a flat-bottomed boat, usually built of oak planks and well suited for sailing in the shallow waters of the Kura Bay and the coastal waters of the Baltic Sea. Kurenas is about 10 m long and was used for fishing, small cargo and other purposes.
It is believed that kurenas-type ships developed in the 16th-17th centuries. in northern Europe, following the example of the Netherlands. Some kurenas-type vessels have survived to this day.
Designer: Š. Leonavicius.
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