Fox

I hope other people are still reading this after all this typing... Today I came across 1671 RN rations and thought I would post it - it's pretty detailed, and more in period that the other rations listed so far. Then I found this set from 1701...

Didn't Cutthroat Island beat you to the grenade launcher?

Memento Mori were very popular in late 17th century Europe, that's almost certainly what the death's head fob is. But, it is a nice period representation of a skul and cross bones - the kind of thing to base the emblems on your flags on. :)

I'm gonna try to re-block an old hat I've got to that shape, but I've got this terrible feeling I'm going to end up looking like the Robber Hotzenplotz or the Scarecrow from Wizard of Oz!

The Kronen was a Swedish warships which sank in 1676. Check out this (dissapointingly small) photo of a sea-chest, hat, and jacket recovered from the wreck.

Just for you Paul, from John Josselyn's "Account of Two Voyages to New England", pub. 1673. (The voyages were made in 1638 and 1663) Nets would slow the ship down, so unless it was specifically a fishing vessel I suspect nets were quite unlikely, but as we can see there was no problem catching fish (or buying it from passing fishermen). A little later Josselyn goes on to talk about typical rations of a merchantman:

If that's an accurate summary of "Villians of all Nations" then it goes a long way to confirming my opinions of Rediker. He makes some interesting points, but too often goes too far in pursuit of his own theories, building up slender evidence into "proof" and ignoring evidence that contradicts his ideas. Pity really. Welcome aboard Gadsen, don't be put off by a negative response, we're all pretty nice really.

Found this today and thought it might be of interest. Admiral William Monson writing in the early 17thC about Spanish rations aboard their galleys. *A kind of very large bean.

A piece of eight is certainly an eight real coin, roughly equivalent to the European thaler or American dollar. Don't you guys have 8 "bits" in a dollar? May I direct you toTHIS THREAD on another discussion board.

It's a distinct possibility...

Coastie, did you ever see "Blackadder Back and Forth?" The only thing the French should be allowed to host is an invasion. Personally I live by: "pain heals, glory lasts forever, and chicks dig scars". :)

I've not come across them that early.

Unfortunately copies of Noodlewhacker's excellent reference work are extremely rare, and copyright issues make reprints unlikely for the next 8,000 years. It is rumoured that even the Library of Congress do not have a copy of Noodlewhacker. Four copies were held in the great library at Alexandria before it was burned, and a further four were lost when the deluge swept the Municipal and State Library of Atlantis Services Building. My own copy is one of only three still known to survive, and was given to me by Noodlewhacker himself, a close personal friend (It is inscribed To Ed, The Ritest and Rittest Pirate there is, Hiram). Noodlewhacker owns one copy, the third is kept under lock and key at the Fitzwilliam Museum, Cambridge.

Look forward to seeing them. FWIW, I think you're probably right about painting flags being accurate, I believe the description of Cocklyn's flags specifically mentions them being painted.

After I left college I used to work during the summers restoring old buildings and the winters working in a builders' merchants, so I saw both sides of the old "go and fetch..." jokes. Fortunately I'd heard most of them at college so I don't think I ever fell for one at work, even when I was the new guy. In the builders' merchants we used to get apprentices coming in for: Skirting board ladders Tartan paint (or striped) Sky hooks Left hand hammers Curved nails and smooth screws Whenever anyone came in and asked for a "long weight" it was kind of unspoken rule that whoever tok the request got to have an unscheduled tea-break, before coming back and saying we'd run out. Since the kid had only been sent to us to get him out the way for a while it was kind of a service to our customers... Some of the best jokes were at college. When we learned basic bricklaying we bricked up the door to a classroom with a rival class inside, and built a 3 foot wall round one guy's car. In the dorms we used to fill the tall tubes the toilet brushes came in with water, lean them on someone's door then knock and run away. The best one though, I think, was when someone went off on a work placement for about three weeks we used a water-pistol to squirt loads of water beneath their door then used a pea-shooter to shoot hundreds of cress seeds into the wet patch. When they returned three weeks later, hey presto, a lovely indoor water-cress patch. I've got mates with exploding cigarettes more times than I care to be reminded of. Loose tops on pepper pots, chilli seeds in sandwiches... all the usual ones. Really tempted to do the treasure chest one too, thanks Pat!

Hey Hurricane, never thought I'd see the day when you played the authenticity card! Good on yer mate.

If you're copying printed documents and can't find graphic copies of the original to print then the font Caslon Antique (available HERE) is basically a copy of 17th century print. For paper I tend to start off with cartridge paper, which is basically the same as some period paper, particularly once it's been folded a few times and the edges have got a bit dogged. I never stain my documents because I don't want them to look "old". They might look old now, but in 1700 (or whenever) they'd have been freshly printed. Gently going over them with some vegetable oil on a wad of tissue paper will impregnate them with oil, ideal for maritime documents and charts.

I believe there are several examples of initiation ceremonies in Hiram V. Noodlewhacker's "Rites and Rituals of the Old Pyrate Brotherhood" Some time ago Corsair and I were discussing an initiation ritual he'd found that involved looking in a mirror, but there didn't seem to be much more than that to it, and no signs of what the significance might have been. They went in the cabin, looked in the mirror and signed articles.

Hmmm, like Black Bart Roberts' "black flags" might have been pink you mean? (anyone got a period reference to that moniker by the way?) Not impossible, especially considering the later use of "black flag" as a euphemism. I'd have to go back over all my notes, but I'm pretty certain that most of the references to "black" flags, particularly those referring to a specific flag, are actually just descriptive. Quite a few of them use the word "sable", which is heraldic language for black, certainly suggesting an actual black flag.

You're quite correct Paul, the Rackham illustration is one from the GHP. I'm pleased you commented on their general (if undetailed) accuracy - too often people say "yeah, but the artist had probably never seen a pirate...", which is probably true, but they were probably quite familiar with seamen in general. And yes, all of the pictures were deliberately chosen because they show naval officers

I recently met Hawkyns when he visited England and happened to call at my home city.

It's on the early May Bank Holiday weekend and there's usually about 50-60 of us. The Pirate Festival is a good starter because the rules of authenticity are pretty lax. Basically as long as you're credible then it's fine - no stuffed parrots, trainers, or plastic eye-patches, but theatrical pirate gear is fine. You might find that if you decide to join one of the groups present (about 6 or 7 groups and a load of non-affiliated individuals usually turn up) then they will have stricter requirements, but you can sort that out with them, and you can find the group which suits you best. My group (and Tall Paul's group) are pretty hot on authenticity and the historical side of piracy, others are completely into Hollywood and hamming it up, some are somewhere in between, so it just depends what you want to do. If you're not sure then you could always come along as a member of the public and see what goes on rather than actually taking part. That way you could still have a good chat with people and see what suits you without feeling like a fish out of water to start with. Either way, you'd be welcome.

That's precisely the reason. I've run across this several times, usually a bit pre-GAoP, but I've never seen substantial evidence for it actually being done. In fairness though, I've never really looked.

It's a little stiff, but not uncomfortable. The principal is to repel water, and it sure works. I've literally had a bucket of water poured over me in that smock and was completely dry inside.