AN ANALYSIS OF NAVIGATIONAL INSTRUMENTS IN THE AGE OF EXPLORATION: 15th CENTURY TO MID-17th CENTURY A Thesis by LOIS ANN SWANICK Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS December 2005 Major Subject: Anthropology AN ANALYSIS OF NAVIGATIONAL INSTRUMENTS IN THE AGE OF EXPLORATION: 15th CENTURY TO MID-17th CENTURY A Thesis by LOIS ANN SWANICK Submitted to the Office of Graduate Studies of Texas A&M University in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of MASTER OF ARTS Approved by: Chair of Committee, C. Wayne Smith Committee Members, Sylvia Grider James Rosenheim Head of Department, David J. Carlson December 2005 Major Subject: Anthropology iii ABSTRACT An Analysis of Navigational Instruments in the Age of Exploration: 15th Century to Mid-17th Century. (December 2005) Lois Ann Swanick, B.A.; B.A., University of Alaska Anchorage Chair of Advisory Committee: Dr. C. Wayne Smith During the Age of Exploration, navigation evolved from a field filled with superstition into a modern science in Portugal, Spain, and England. The most common navigation instruments utilized and their subsequent innovations are discussed. The refinement of these instruments led to increased accuracy in cartography, safer shipping, and increased trade globally in the period. In order to have the most comprehensive collection of navigation instruments, I investigated 165 shipwrecks dated between 1500 and 1700. Each of these vessels have been located, surveyed, and/or excavated in whole or in part. A comprehensive list of these vessels, compiled for the first time, has been included. This thesis analyzes navigation-related artifacts recovered from 27 of these shipwreck sites. These instruments provide the basis to develop a typology for archaeologists to more closely date these finds. The navigation instruments recovered from the wreck of LaBelle (1686) are discussed in detail. These instruments and related historical documents kept by the navigator provide a more comprehensive picture of the instruments’ accuracy and usefulness. This thesis particularly focuses on the nocturnal/ iv planisphere recovered from the site. This unique instrument is one of only four known to exist worldwide and remains accurate enough to be utilized today. Analysis by a modern astronomer has been included, as well as a partial translation of the common names for constellations inscribed on the instrument. These common names provide some important insights into the received knowledge of sailors and non-academic astronomy during this period. It is hoped that this thesis will be of assistance to archaeologists working to identify, study, and appreciate navigational instruments recovered from shipwrecks. With increased documentation and closer dating, these instruments will become a more valuable portion of the archaeological record. v DEDICATION To my beloved husband, Daren, and our son, Charlie. vi ACKNOWLEDGMENTS This thesis was made possible by the contributions, research, support, and dedication of many. Many thanks to the researchers, conservators, and collection managers at the following museums for their support and assistance: Kalmar Läns Museum (Kalmar, Sweden), Vasa Museum (Stockholm, Sweden), National Maritime Museum (London, England, United Kingdom), Portsmouth Historic Dockyard (Portsmouth, England, United Kingdom), Maritime Museum (Amsterdam, Netherlands), Western Australia Maritime Museum (Fremantle, Australia), and Mel Fisher Maritime Heritage Society and Museum (Key West, Florida, United States). To those professionals and enthusiasts who developed websites on excavations, artifacts, shipping, and navigation, I extend my sincere appreciation for their hard work. Special thanks to Andy Elkerton of the Mary Rose Trust for the information on Mary Rose and Tudor navigation. I would like to thank the Texas Historical Commission, particularly Jim Bruseth, Jeff Durst, and Steve Hoyt for their consistent support and permission to study and use photographs of the navigation artifacts recovered from LaBelle. Special thanks to Texas A&M University, specifically, the Department of Animal Science for use of their digital camera, Don Carona (Department of Physics) for generously sharing his time and knowledge, as well as Dr. C. Wayne Smith (Department of Anthropology) for the use of his equipment. I would also like to thank Helen Dewolf and Amy Borgens at the Conservation Research Laboratory vii (College Station, Texas, United States) for providing conservation records and their careful preservation of the LaBelle artifact. While many authors provided valuable information, for his research into scientific instruments in this period, as well as his personal support for this research, I would like to thank Gerard L’E Turner. I owe a debt of gratitude to Lord High Admiral D. W. Waters and E. G. R. Taylor for their extensive writings on the history of navigation and mathematics in England. Without contest, their texts defined the science and history of navigation in this early period. I wish to acknowledge the invaluable contributions of my committee, particularly Dr. C. Wayne Smith, who served as chair. Their contributions have greatly improved this thesis. Special thanks to the staff of the Evans Library Interlibrary Loan Office. Their unflagging efforts to obtain obscure documents and books, often in foreign languages, were extraordinary. I also wish to thank the Museum of the History of Science for permission to reproduce their photos of navigational instruments. This thesis would not have been possible without the consistent support and encouragement of my parents, Ed Behrle and Gayle Behrle, who encouraged me every step of the way and believed in me. I would like to extend my eternal gratitude to Daren Swanick for his endless enthusiasm, support, and understanding. Specifically, thanks for his tireless efforts on the LaBelle planisphere. And last, but never least, thanks to my sweet Charlie for his support when the going got rough. You’re the best! viii TABLE OF CONTENTS Page ABSTRACT .................................................................................................... iii DEDICATION ..................................................................................................v ACKNOWLEDGMENTS ................................................................................. vi TABLE OF CONTENTS.................................................................................viii LIST OF TABLES ........................................................................................... xi LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................ xii CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION .............................................................................1 II AN OVERVIEW OF NAVIGATIONAL HISTORY (1400-1642).........9 1400-1500.............................................................................9 1500-1550...........................................................................18 1550-1600...........................................................................26 1600-1642...........................................................................33 After 1642 ...........................................................................39 Mathematics and Astronomy in Navigational History..........40 Cartography and Hydrography in Navigational History .......46 The Longitude Problem.......................................................49 III LITERATURE REVIEW .................................................................53 Almanacs ............................................................................55 Brief Journals, Traverse Books, and Logbooks ..................56 Navigation Teaching Texts .................................................57 Astronomy and Mathematics Texts.....................................59 Geography and Hydrography Texts....................................60 Dictionaries and Word Books..............................................62 Navigational Instrument Literature ......................................64 Popular Reprints .................................................................67 Secondary Sources.............................................................68 ix CHAPTER Page IV INSTRUMENT ANALYSIS.............................................................71 Positional Instruments.........................................................72 The Cross Staff ........................................................73 The Back Staff..........................................................79 Astrolabes ................................................................84 Direction, Depth, and Speed Instruments ...........................89 Compasses and Binnacles.......................................90 Sounding Weights ....................................................98 Log Lines................................................................100 Course and Timekeeping Instruments ..............................102 Traverse Boards.....................................................103 Nocturnals..............................................................106 Sandglasses...........................................................109 Drafting Instruments..........................................................112 Dividers ..................................................................113 V ARCHAEOLOGICAL FINDS........................................................116