A Nautical Glossary

A photo of a model and two drawings show the remains of the Ma’agan Micha’el ship as reconstructed by investigators. A list of nautical terms, in alphabetical order, follows.

Bow: the front of a ship

False Keel (or Shoe): protective planks attached to the bottom of the keel

Floor Timber: part of the frame centered over the keel, with arms spanning both sides of the bottom of the hull

Frame: transverse timbers that reinforce the hull planking and give a ship its shape; akin to ribs in a human torso

Futtock: an extension of a floor timber

Hull: the body of a ship

Keel: the backbone of a ship, running along the lowest part of the hull from stem to stern

Mast Step: a frame or slot into which the lower end of the mast fits

Mortise-and-Tenon Joints: a connection between two timbers in which a protrusion, the tenon, is inserted into a corresponding slot, or mortise

Shoe: see False Keel

Stanchion: an upright post or support

Stem Post: an upright timber at the bow of a ship

Stern: the rear of a ship