Ship of the Line: Did you mean...?

According to UNESCO, an estimated three million shipwrecks are scattered in the oceans’ deep canyons, trenches, and coral reefs and remain undiscovered. These shipwrecks preserve historical information and provide clues about how people lived...

Full view of the Oseberg Viking ship dating from c. 820 CE discovered in a lavish ship burial setting in Oslo fjord, Norway. The ship is housed in the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo, Norway.

Frontal view of the Viking ship known as the Gokstad, housed at the Viking Ship Museum in Oslo, Norway. The ship dates from c. 900 CE and was preserved in a ship burial found in Oslo fjord. The lapstrake technique in which the hull planks...

The first Viking ship able to navigate the sea easily is known as the Nydam ship, from Denmark, built c. 350-400 CE, though this ship had no sail. Gottorp Castle, Sleswig.

The Battle of Flamborough Head (23 September 1779) was one of the most famous naval engagements of the American Revolutionary War (1775-1783). Fought off the coast of Yorkshire, England, it pitted the USS Bonhomme Richard, commanded by John...

Captain William Kidd (c. 1645-1701) was a Scottish privateer turned pirate who, despite only ever capturing one significant prize ship, has become legendary thanks to the persistent rumour he buried a fantastic treasure that nobody has yet...

Edward 'Ned' Low was an English pirate active in the Caribbean and eastern Atlantic from 1721 to 1724 during the Golden Age of Piracy (1690-1730). Probably the most sadistic and cruelest of all pirate captains, Low was said to have frequently...

A diagram of the Brooks (or Brookes), a British slave ship launched in 1781 CE. This ship carried enslaved African people on a brutal journey across the Atlantic during the 18th Century CE. Diagram created in 1787 CE, depicting the inhumane...

A ship is represented on this coin issued during the reign of the Satavahana king Vashishthiputra Shri Pulumavi (130 CE – 150 CE). The ship is depicted having two masts. Location: British Museum, London, United Kingdom.

A detail of Viking Age decorative artwork found on the Oseberg ship interred in a ship burial in Norway c. 834 CE. It displays the first animal ornamentation style of the Viking Age, known as Style E (and sometimes referred to as the Oseberg-...