02-11AP St. Paul's Ship Art PrintConsidering the number of ships of antiquity, it is strange how little we know about them in spite of the amount of research expended upon the subject. Ancient records show that Egyptian boats with wooden planking were made of cedar from Lebanon. Probably St. Paul's ship was also made from the cedars of Lebanon. The vessel, which was eventually shipwrecked in the winter, was loaded with a cargo of wheat (from Egypt) and 276 people, including St. Paul and his Centurion guard, Julius, bound for Rome.It is regretted that the name of the vessel (from the story in Acts Chapters 27 and 28) goes unrecorded. We are, however, advised of the name of the ship that carried Paul and his companions to Rome after the shipwreck (Acts 28:11). It is safe to say that no single one of the myriad of waterborne craft since the beginning of marine transportation has had publicity equal to this one. The story in Acts Chapter 27 does not give us a detailed description of the ship. The facts given in the biblical texts, and the technical knowledge and ingenuity of Dr. Jules Sottas, the French marine archaeologist, permit us to obtain a satisfying idea of the appearance of St. Paul's ship. According to Dr. Sotta's calculations, the ship was about 96-ft. from stem to stern or 100-ft. overall, 31-ft. extreme breadth, and an interior depth of about 13-ft. The bulk of a vessel of these dimensions would approximate 250 tons. The lack of technical details in the Bible is sometimes regretted, but of overriding importance is the Gospel message it contains. (Information from Forty Famous Ships by Henry B. Culver, and from the Holy Bible.) |
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