写真

We were sailing out of Lakka harbour on the North coast of the island of Paxoi en route for Kerkyra, and ultimately Italy, on a yacht delivery trip last year. We passed this traditional schooner called "Rhea" and of course I had to knock off a few frames. When I got home, I researched the ship, and found out some details of her chequered career. For those of you interested in such things, here's what I found (the potted version!)

Launched and registered at Nyborg, Denmark, on the 18th June, 1900, "Rhea" is a topsail schooner, built of oak on oak frames. She was originally named "Kjerstine", and was probably originally a fishing trawler. However she was soon transporting stone for sea defence works, and by 1903 had been sold to a company specializing in diving. By 1922 she had been renamed "Anne", and had her first engine fitted. For some reason, "Anne" appeared an unpopular name, as a year later, another name change saw her as "Martha", and by this time, she was ketch rigged (two masts, but no square sails). Over the next couple of decades as a working boat, she suffered the fate of many sailing ships, of losing most of her rigging, in favour of a more powerful engine. In the 1970s she changed hands and was bought from Denmark by a German, Kapitan Hans-Peter von Holdt of Hamburg. By now she only had one "quarter deck" mast. Under his ownership, another name change made her "Juliane von Holdt", named after Hans-Peter von Holdt's daughter, and she was registered in Kiel, jointly owned by von Holdt and one Bernhard Gumb. They set about refitting the ship for sailing, seeming to add a new foremast and jib boom. By now "Juliane von Holdt" was used as touristic attraction at Hornum on the island of Sylt in the North Sea. She ran short "duty free" trips and visits to the nearby seal reservations. By the late '80s, and finally with her current name of "Rhea", Bernhard Gumb was chartering her in Turkish waters. In 1989 "Rhea" was purchased and recommissioned by the current owners, English couple David Ross and Penny Lefeaux. She was returned to her original topsail schooner rig, and ever since has been chartering around Turkey and the Greek Islands.
Name changes for ships are, according to superstitious marine lore, supposed to bring bad luck. But "Rhea" seems a happy and successful exception to this!