Roman Shipping

• A Roman mosaic excavated in a 2nd century CE bath house in Althiburus, Tunisia, revealed 25 different ship types with their names.
• The mosaic shows a collection of small to medium naval, cargo, fishing and pleasure boats used both at sea and on rivers. This shows the Romans had an extensive knowledge of different shipbuilding techniques.

Roman Shipbuilding

• Vitruvian Method of Shipbuilding
  • This method, described by Vitruvius, was the Roman technique of building the shell of the ship first.

The Grain Ships

• The Alexandrian Grain Fleet consisted of giant sea-going vessels that could remain at sea for months. They carried the grain from the granaries of Alexandria to Rome.
• The Grain fleet was distinguished by carrying a red triangular topsail.
• Although none have survived, the Lake Nemi Roman Shipwrecks give an approximate idea of how big these ships may have been.

Roman Anchors

• Roman Anchors found from the Republican Period resembled Greek Anchors, where a ship would carry multiple small stones or pieces of weighted wood with a hole to thread the anchor rope.
• In the first century CE, iron tipped flukes started to be used in a design similar to modern anchors.

Roman Rudder

• The Romans did not use a central Rudder, but instead used a pair of steering oars.
• These were positioned either side of the stern.

The Roman Square Sail

• The Square Rig dominated design in the ancient world.
• It could not sail more than 60 degrees into the wind, meaning it required a forward mast and sail, the Artemon, to turn it through the wind.
• As the vessel approached 60 degrees to the wind, the spritsail and mast helped it to turn through the wind by being angled in the opposite tack to catch the wind, this would then carry the bows round through the wind and the mainsail could be put on the opposite tack.
• This did not work in strong winds and the vessel had to ‘wear about’ to turn. ‘Wearing about’ could be done in any wind.

Block and Tackle

• The square sail required at least nine ropes per sail, which were all attached using the Block and Tackle to rings along the sides of the vessel. This way, raising and lowering the sail could be done relatively easily from the main deck.

Ballast

• Sometimes Lead was used as ballast to line the hulls of Roman vessels.
• Usually, Rocks and stones were used on empty sectors, then thrown overboard when no longer required.

Roman Shipwrecks

• A number of shipwrecks from the Roman Period have been discovered and preserved in various museums, which has enabled archeologists to understand how Roman ships were constructed.
• River vessels have been reconstructed in the Mainz Ancient Ship Museum in Germany. The Lake Nemi Roman Shipwrecks found near Rome, have been reconstructed as models.

Roman Docks and Harbours

• Roman harbours were constructed with long Breakwaters using Roman Concrete.
• The harbour walls were built with large dressed stones. Some of the Roman Docks have been excavated in the following locations:
  • Rome
    • The Docks of Ancient Rome.
    • Ostia, Portus and Centumcellae
    • Puteoli
  • Gaul
    •  Frejus and Marseille.
  • Greece
    • Aeigira, on the Gulf of Corinth.
  • The Levant
    • Seleucia of Pieria
    • Caesarea Maritima
  • Britain
    • Roman Docks have been found at London, Dover and Chester.

The Roman Lighthouse

• The Romans guided their shipping into harbours or around dangerous headlands by using lighthouses and some are still standing:
  • La Coruna Roman Lighthouse
  • Patara Roman Lighthouse (ruins)
  • Dover Roman Lighthouse.
• Roman Lighthouses that are recorded but no longer standing are the Boulogne Roman Lighthouse and the Pharos of Portus.

Mare Liberum

• • Mare liberum meant that the seas were open to shipping. However, it appears that some merchant vessels sailed all year round.

Mare Clausum (closed sea)

• In Ancient Rome and Greece, meant that the seas were closed to shipping.
• Vegetius
  • Vegetius (4th century CE), divided sailing into four seasons, like Hesiod before him. The seas were closed three days before the 11th November (the Ides of November). The seas were reopened six days before 10th March (the Ides of March).

Roman Navigation

• The Periplus

  • The easiest way to navigate the seas was along the coasts or in a due east or west direction.
  • The Romans used Marine Pilot Guides known as a Periplus, which gave brief descriptions of coastlines, harbours and ports. The best known of these are:
    • Periplus of the Euxine Sea a Guide to the Black Sea.
    • Periplus of the Erythraean Sea a Guide to the Indian Ocean.

• Ptolemy's Geographia

  • Roman Charts were also used, in c. 150 CE, the Egyptian Geographer Ptolemy published Ptolemy's Geographia which was a chart that showed coastlines and Parallels of latitude. He based the Roman Zero Meridian on the Canary Islands.
  • Parallel of Rhodes was a straight East West sea route between the Eastern Mediterranean and Italy, that only required a detour round the Peloponnese.

• Roman Wind Rose

  • The Roman Wind Rose was the Greek Wind Rose reduced to 8 Winds with Latin Names.

• Celestial Navigation

  • By measuring the altitude of Polaris above the Horizon, the angle in degrees gives the Latitude of the vessel.
  • The altitude of the Stars and the Sun, could be measured by a similar device to the Astrolabe. No Roman Astrolabe has been found, but they had descriptions of how to build them.

• Mediterranean Winds and Currents

  • The Mediterranean is unpredictable and difficult to navigate, with storms appearing unexpectedly which can be overwhelming. The Tides however are negligible.
  • There is an anticlockwise coastal current entering and departing at Gibraltar, which is mainly eastwards to refill the evaporation of the Mediterranean. The current is then helped by the Coriolis effect.
  • Many local winds enter the Mediterranean from deep inland. Periods of nil wind require the use of the currents. Most navigation therefore had to be coastal in order to follow the current.
  • Waterspouts can occur near islands in the Ionian Sea.

• Nautical Dictionary

  • Sailing Terms that apply to sailing vessels and square rigged vessels from the Age of Sail.

• Piracy

  • During the Roman Republic Piracy was a serious problem, but under the Empire, the Mediterranean became Mare Nostrum (Our Sea) and Piracy disappeared.
    • Pirates of Cilicia
    • Pirates of Crete
    • Pirates of Liburnia
    • Pirates of the Black Sea
    • Pirates of the Tyrrhenian Sea
    • Pompey and the Pirates
    • Julius Caesar and the Pirates of Cilicia

Amphorae

• • The pottery Amphora was the container of the Ancient World. There were Roman Potteries making Amphorae in Narbonne, Gaul and Spain.
  • The Amphorae were stacked aboard the vessel in vertical rows one above the other, and therefore could not move.
  • The shards from the Amphorae that arrived in Rome are preserved in a huge mound known as Monte Testaccio.

Roman Cargoes

• • The main commodities shipped in the Mediterranean were Salt, Olive Oil, Grain, Garum and Wine.
  • The main metals were Lead and Tin from Britannia and Gold and other metals from Spain. From the Baltic came Amber.
  • From Arabia via the Red Sea came Frankincense and Myrrh.
  • From India and China came Spices and the Spice Trade. The Muziris Papyrus is a contract between a Merchant of Alexandria and an Alexandrian Financier, regarding a cargo of Pepper and Spices from Muziris in India.
  • A List of Goods with their prices was published in 295 CE, known as Diocletian's Price List.

Plimsoll line, waterline or load line

• • Although there was no load line on Roman vessels, they did adopt the Lex Rhodia and had laws regulating the loading of vessels.

Portorium

• • Roman Import-Export Tax in Harbours was called the Portorium and was collected by Harbour officials known as Portitores.

Rhodian Sea Law

• • The Romans adopted Rhodian Maritime Law, but only a brief mention has survived.
  • The Rhodian Maritime Laws were referred to as the ‘Lex Rhodia’, but no copy has ever been found.
  • What little we know of them is from a brief mention in Roman Law, in Book 2, Title 7  of the Roman law text of ‘Opinions of Julius Portus’ (c. 235 CE). Five provisions only have survived, regarding the emergency jettisoning of cargo.
  • The Digest of Justinian (529-534 CE) was a collection of Roman Laws into three sections. Section III refers to the Sea Laws of Rhodes and deals with maritime law.

The Roman Merchants and Shipowners

• • In 218 BCE a law was passed forbidding Senators or their sons from owning ships with a capacity of over 300 Amphorae.
  • This meant ownership of vessels became dominated by the emerging Equestrian class or by foreigners.

The Roman Captain

• • Roman Merchant Captain was known as the ‘Magister navis’.
  • If he owned his own vessel, his title was ‘Exercitor navis’.

The Maritime Loan

• • The Owners needed to raise finance to purchase their vessels and the cargoes to be carried in them. This was a specialised form of lending known as the Maritime Loan, which the Romans inherited from the Greeks.
  • The Maritime Loan was called the ‘nauticum faenus’ or the ‘mutua pecunia nautica’. The Loan would be made either to one individual shipowner or to a large consortium of shipowners. The loan was to be repaid within one year and the cargo used as collateral in the event of default.
  • Maritime Loans were exempt under Roman Law from applying standard interest rate of 12% per annum. As a result, the interest rate could be double this amount or more. This reflected the greater risk of transport by sea.
  • Under the Lex Rhodia, the Captain was the ‘Possessor’ and the Shipper was the ‘Owner’. This distinction between Ownership and Possession of Goods, established the Liability for Insurance purposes, between the Shipper and the Vessel’s Captain.