Recreating a bronze naval ram

[Imperial Dave]

https://www.newscientist.com/article/2476277-bronze-naval-ram-from-roman-battle-recreated-using-ancient-techniques/

One for Nick

[Adrian Nayler]

I haven't read this piece as it's behind a paywall. However, I was impressed by a sentence that I could read for free which said "They plan to test the weapon on replica warships to assess how effective the rams were during naval battles." "Now, that I gotta see," I thought.

Then the reality check (and the budgetary constraints) kicked in - presumably, this will be computer modelling rather than real-life replicas. Real shame though.

In case the journalist failed to cite his source, I'm pretty sure it's going to be the Ancient Naval Ram Casting Project, details of which can be found here:

https://stephendecasien.com/ancient-naval-ram-casting-project/

The research paper is slated for release in June 2025, and I suspect it will not be released in open access, at least initially.

[Keraunos]

I haven't read this piece as it's behind a paywall. However, I was impressed by a sentence that I could read for free which said "They plan to test the weapon on replica warships to assess how effective the rams were during naval battles." "Now, that I gotta see," I thought.

You mean you havn't seen Gladiator II? 

[Ian61]

I haven't read this piece as it's behind a paywall. However, I was impressed by a sentence that I could read for free which said "They plan to test the weapon on replica warships to assess how effective the rams were during naval battles." "Now, that I gotta see," I thought.

You mean you havn't seen Gladiator II? 

No. Last film I saw in a cinema was The Kings Speech which is a long while ago now. Reason is easy we have only one cinema in easy reach and it's an Odeon that uses its monopoly to rip us off especially if you want a seat you can see from, daughter goes occasionally and is debating value. Sorry sticking to Freeview and even then listen more to radio/podcasts than TV. Happy to keep paying a licence fee to keep those going.

[Adrian Nayler]

I haven't read this piece as it's behind a paywall. However, I was impressed by a sentence that I could read for free which said "They plan to test the weapon on replica warships to assess how effective the rams were during naval battles." "Now, that I gotta see," I thought.

You mean you havn't seen Gladiator II? 

I really couldn't make up my mind whether to see Gladiator II or Napoleon but in the end I opted to stay home instead. I subsequently adopted an air of satisfied smugness when various of my friends returned from the cinema monetarily the poorer and seething with rage. Sometimes you just kinda know how things are going to turn out.

[stevenneate]

I haven't read this piece as it's behind a paywall. However, I was impressed by a sentence that I could read for free which said "They plan to test the weapon on replica warships to assess how effective the rams were during naval battles." "Now, that I gotta see," I thought.

You mean you havn't seen Gladiator II? 

I really couldn't make up my mind whether to see Gladiator II or Napoleon but in the end I opted to stay home instead. I subsequently adopted an air of satisfied smugness when various of my friends returned from the cinema monetarily the poorer and seething with rage. Sometimes you just kinda know how things are going to turn out.

Yes, both films were pretty dreadful, so money well saved and better spent on wargaming stuff.

[Nick Harbud]

Not sure what the angle is on this paper.  Is it the method they used for casting the ram (lost wax, which is hardly innovative or restricted to ancient times)?  Or is it the design of the ram itself, which is slightly non-intuitive until one realises that a principal feature is to avoid getting stuck in the guts of the target?

The idea of testing (even by way of computer) the effect of different ram designs on ancient vessels sounds quite interesting, but this is a fairly well worn path that has been discussed by Robin Oldfield in 'Collision Damage in Triremes' amongst other places.  

How did we end up with the fluted design rather than something more solid?  Well, once the ancient galley builders had discovered how bad a single sharpened spike was, they probably turned to a thicker and blunter design.  However, if this is cast as a single solid beam, it uses an awful lot of bronze, which would not only be very expensive, but also too heavy.  (Coates points out that weight is important as it can affect the trim of the vessel.  The Olympias ram tip turns out to be just the right weight for its location on the hull.)  Therefore, they reworked the design to remove bronze until they ended up with something that retained the strength of a solid beam whilst being much lighter.  As the old engineering saying goes, "Good design is not about how much material one needs, but how little you can get away with."