Model of a Boat with Crew

Model of a rowing boat crewed by eighteen men. The mast is stowed and sixteen men are rowing. Originally there would have been eighteen rowing but two men are missing from their positions. Only eleven oars remain. The steersman sits in the stern manoeuvring the large steering oar. The pilot stands in the bows, his left arm outstretched (he may originally have held a tender).The figures and the boat itself were originally covered with a thin layer of fine plaster and painted. Linen textile still remains around some of the figures. It had previously been thought this boat matches with one from tomb 585 illustrated in Garstang (1907) fig. 86. However, the photograph includes extra objects such as animal skin shield and spears. 22.3.15.1 is the original number but the object is also known as 55.82.5. The object was a gift from John Rankin along with three models from the tomb of Bakta, no. 412 (Garstang 1907 p. 225 nos. ii and iii). There is a possibility John Rankin was given the whole group of artefacts from tomb 412 which included a "model of rowing boat” (Garstang, 1907, p. 225).