Olympias is a reconstruction of an ancient
Athenian trireme.
She was constructed from 1985 to 1987 by a shipbuilder in
Piraeus. Finance came from the
Hellenic Navy and donors such as
Frank Welsh (a
Suffolk banker, writer and trireme enthusiast). The building was advised by the historians
J. S. Morrison and John F. Coates and the classics teacher
Charles Willink, who with Welsh founded the Trireme Trust that initiated the project, and drew on evidence gained from underwater archaeology. The Trireme Trust is now chaired by Professor
Boris Rankov (
Royal Holloway University of London).
The
bronze bow ram weighed 200 kg. The ship was built from
Oregon pine and
Virginia oak.
She was subject to
sea trials in 1987, 1990, 1992 and 1994, but one of the most informative was an exercise in 1987 when crewed by 170 volunteer oarsmen and oarswomen.
Olympias achieved a speed of 9 knots (17 km/h) and was able to execute 180 degree turns within one minute, in an arc no wider than two and a half (2.5) ship-lengths. These results, achieved with an inexperienced crew, suggest that the ancient writers were not exaggerating about the capabilities of such vessels.
Olympias was transported to
Britain in 1993, to take part in events celebrating the 2,500 years since the beginning of
democracy. In
2004 Olympias was used to transport the
Olympic Flame ceremonially from the port of
Keratsini to the main port of
Piraeus, as the
Olympic Torch Relay entered its final stages in the run-up to the
2004 Summer Olympics opening ceremony. She is now an exhibit in a dry dock in
Faliron,
Athens,
Greece.
A tireme of the classical period would have had a crew of 200, including five officers. This would be made up of:
- Trierarchos Greek Τριήραρχος - the commanding officer, responsible for supporting the ship
- Kybernetes Greek Κυβερνήτης (executive officer, responsible for the cruising safety)
- Keleustes Greek Κελευστής - responsible for the training and morale of the crew
- Pentecontarchos Greek Πεντηκόνταρχος (Administration Officer),
- Prorates Greek Πρωράτης (Bow Officer, responsible for keeping a sharp lookout))
- 1 Auletes Greek Αυλητής, a musician supplying the oar timing with his flute
- 170 oarsmen in three banks
- *62 Thranites Greek Θρανήτες, the upper bank
- *54 Zygites Greek Ζυγήτες, the middle bank
- *54 Thalamites Greek Θαλαμήτες, lower bank
- 10 sailors for handling the sails
See also
