Greek trireme
A fast oared warship built around crew power, tactical manoeuvre and the bronze-sheathed ram rather than cargo capacity or ocean endurance.
Explore the triremeHistorical vessels
Ships that changed sea travel
A vessel only makes sense in its own waters, work and period. Explore warships, cargo carriers and voyaging craft from the Mediterranean, Indian Ocean, Pacific, North Atlantic and later oceanic travel, with uncertainty kept visible where surviving evidence is incomplete.
Roman merchant ship
Broad sailing vessels carried grain, wine, oil and other cargo through a Mediterranean economy that depended on bulk sea transport.
Explore Roman merchant shippingIndian Ocean sewn-plank vessels
Shipbuilders around the western Indian Ocean used sewn construction traditions long before iron-fastened hulls became universal.
Explore sewn vesselsPolynesian voyaging canoe
Large double-hulled and related voyaging craft supported deliberate settlement and long-distance travel across the Pacific.
Explore voyaging canoesBorobudur ship
Ship reliefs at Borobudur preserve evidence for sophisticated sailing craft in early medieval Java and the maritime world around it.
Explore the Borobudur shipJong
Large Southeast Asian sailing vessels belonged to a regional shipbuilding tradition that impressed foreign observers and served inter-island commerce.
Explore the jongViking longship
A shallow-draft oared and sailed vessel optimized for speed, landing access and military movement rather than bulk cargo.
Explore the longshipViking knarr
A broader Norse cargo vessel better suited than a longship to carrying supplies, livestock and trade goods across open water.
Explore the knarrDhow traditions
A family of Indian Ocean sailing vessels rather than one standardized design, associated with Arabian Sea and western Indian Ocean commerce.
Explore dhow traditionsChinese junk traditions
Regional Chinese vessel types used characteristic sail and hull traditions across coastal, river and long-distance maritime settings.
Explore Chinese junksCaravel
A relatively small sailing vessel whose manoeuvrability made it useful in fifteenth-century Atlantic exploration and coastal reconnaissance.
Explore the caravelCog and carrack
These vessels illustrate the growth of northern European cargo shipping and the larger ocean-going sailing ships of the late medieval and early modern periods.
Explore cogs and carracksGalleon
Large sailing ships combined cargo capacity, ocean endurance and armament in expanding early modern intercontinental networks.
Explore the galleonClipper
Long, fine-lined sailing ships pursued speed on nineteenth-century commercial routes where delivery time could command a premium.
Explore clippersSteamship and ocean liner
Steam propulsion reduced dependence on favourable winds and eventually made scheduled passenger services across oceans practical.
Explore steamships and linersCompare them: use the ship comparison engine or follow vessels inside the historical route network.