Amerigo vespucci

Amerigo vespucci

Designed by engineer Francesco Rotundi, a Lieutenant Colonel of the Naval Corps, she was laid down in 1930 at the Castellammare di Stabia shipyard and launched on 22 February 1931. Although built in steel, she closely resembles a vessel from the first half of the 19th century. Conceived for the role she has fulfilled throughout her entire career—that of a training ship—she remained, from 1946 to 1952, the only vessel of her kind in service with the Italian Navy, following the transfer of Cristoforo Colombo as war reparations and until the acquisition of Ebe, a 1921 brigantine schooner.
In addition to her training cruises—which have taken her on a full circumnavigation of the globe and across both the Americas and Australia—she has frequently served as a representative vessel. Notable appearances include the 2002 America’s Cup in Auckland, the 2004 Olympic Games in Athens, and the 2005 commemoration of the Battle of Trafalgar.

After 75 years of service, in 2006 she underwent extensive extraordinary maintenance at the Naval Arsenal of La Spezia, including the replacement of the entire foremast, large sections of the hull planking, and many auxiliary systems.

Specifications

Zaoli e la nave più bella del mondo

The twenty-four sails of the Amerigo Vespucci that we produced include square sails, staysails, and jibs, for a total surface area of approximately 2,650 square meters. All of them are made from linen Olona canvas.

To produce these sails, 6,624 meters of linen fabric were required—specially manufactured in different weights—along with 516 meters of 16 mm steel cable bolt rope, 1,504 meters of 36 mm hemp cable bolt rope, 236 kilograms of cowhide for finishing all the boltrope edges, and 79,200 meters of waxed thread for hand stitching.

The sails feature 15,880 meters of stitching, carried out entirely by hand, and have a total weight of 5,036 kilograms.