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Later full-rigged ships split the topsail (and often the topgallant sail) for easier handling. They thus set two topsails (and possibly two topgallant sails) per mast. The lower topgallant sail is immediately above the upper topsail. The upper or only topgallant sail is set from the top of the topgallant mast. If there is a lower topgallant it ...
As rigs became taller by the end of the 19th century, masts relied more heavily on successive spars, stepped one atop the other to form the whole, from bottom to top: the lower mast, top mast, and topgallant mast. This construction relies heavily on support by a complex array of stays and shrouds.
Thus, the mizzen topgallant staysail can be found dangling from the stay leading from above the mizzen (third) mast's topgallant sail (i.e., from the mizzen topgallant yard) to at least one and usually two sails down from that on the main mast (the slope of the top edge of all staysail lines runs from a higher point nearer the stern to a lower ...
The main-topgallant and main-royal braces run forwards to the foremast and are not visible in this picture. A brace on a square-rigged ship is a rope ( line ) used to rotate a yard around the mast, to allow the ship to sail at different angles to the wind.
For staysails between the foremast and the mainmast (from bottom to top): main, main-topmast, main-topgallant, and main-royal (...staysail). Staysails between other masts are similarly named. The mizzen sail (or "spanker") is a gaff-rigged, fore-and-aft sail, mounted on the after side of the mizzenmast. It was used to help tack the vessel. [8] [9]
Key: 1. Forestay 2. Shroud 3. (Spreaders) 4. Backstay 5. Inner forestay 6. Sidestay 7. (Boom) 8. Running backstays Standing rigging on a square-rigged vessel (illustrated left), which supports a mast comprising three steps: main, top, and topgallant (illustrated right). The shrouds support each section laterally and the stays support each, fore ...
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This is not the masthead "crow's nest" of the popular imagination – above the mainmast (for example) is the main-topmast, main-topgallant-mast and main-royal-mast, so that the top is actually about 1/4 to 1/3 of the way up the mast as a whole. The main purpose of the top is to anchor the shrouds of the topmast that extends above it.