View source for Snow (ship)

{{Distinguish|Brig}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2017}}
{{Infobox weapon
|is_vehicle=yes
|type=Sailing rig
|origin=Northern Europe
| name         = Snow
| image        = Snow.png
| image_size   = 240
| caption      = Schematic view of a snow, showing the snow-mast, a loose footed gaff sail and clewed up main course
| length       =
| weight       =
| speed        =
| crew         =
}}
In [[sailing]], a '''snow''', '''snaw''' or '''snauw''' is a square-rigged vessel with two masts, complemented by a snow- or trysail-mast stepped immediately abaft (behind) the main mast.<ref name="hans">Hans Haalmeijer (2009). Pinassen, fluiten en galjassen, the Netherlands: Uitgeverij De Alk B.V.</ref>

== History ==
The word 'snow' comes from 'snauw', which is an old Dutch word for [[beak]], a reference to the characteristic sharp bow of the vessel.<ref name="hans"/> The snow evolved from the (three-masted) [[Full-rigged ship|ship]]: the [[Mast (sailing)#Nomenclature|mizzen mast]] of a ship was gradually moved closer towards the mainmast, until the mizzen mast was no longer a separate mast, but was instead made fast at the main mast [[Crosstrees|top]]. As such, in the 17th century the snow used to be sometimes classified as a three-masted vessel.<ref>Dik Vuik, Hans Haalmeijer (2006). Aken, tjalken en kraken. Alkmaar, the Netherlands: Uitgeverij De Alk B.V.</ref>

The snow dates back to the late 17th century and originally had a [[Parts of a sail#Quadrilateral fore-and-aft sails|loose-footed]] [[Gaff rig|gaff sail]]; the boom was introduced somewhere in the 18th century. It was a popular type of vessel in the Baltic Sea and was employed by a large number of nations during its time. The snow was considered a handy and fast sailing vessel, typically the largest two-masted vessel around, and was employed in both [[navy]] and [[Merchant vessel|merchant]] service.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.vaartips.nl/zeevaart.htm#snauw|title = Oude zeegaande schepen}}</ref> When used as a naval vessel, snows were, in the early 18th century, typically fitted with 5 to 16 [[Cannon|guns]]. Naval snows were mostly used for coastal patrols and [[privateer]]ing whereas in the merchant service snows traded all the way to the [[Mediterranean Sea|Mediterranean]] and sometimes even sailed as far as the [[West Indies]].

[[File:A naval snow.jpg|thumb|1759 painting of a [[Royal Navy]] snow in two positions by [[Charles Brooking]]]]

{{Quote|Snow: the largest of all old two-masted vessels. The sails and rigging on the main mast of a snow are exactly similar to those on the same masts in a [[full-rigged ship]]; only that there is a small mast behind the mainmast of the former, which carries a sail nearly resembling the mizzen of a ship.|[[Captain Charles Johnson]]|''[[A General History of the Pyrates]]''<ref>{{cite book |title=A General History of the Pyrates |last=Johnson |first=Charles |author-link=Captain Charles Johnson |orig-year=First published 1724 |isbn=978-1479322572 |chapter=The Introduction |date=16 September 2012 |page=xlviii |publisher=CreateSpace Independent Publishing Platform |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ucRrMgEACAAJ&q=general+history+pyrates++johnson |access-date=19 June 2011}}</ref>}}

== Comparison with brig ==
[[File:Brig Niagara 1913 edit.jpg|thumb|The "snow-brig" USS ''Niagara'' (center) in 1913]]

While the snow and the [[brig]] might appear closely related, this is in fact not the case. The two rigs developed from different directions, the brig evolving from the generally smaller [[brigantine]], and the much older snow evolving from the larger [[Full-rigged ship|three-masted ship]].<ref name="hans"/>

The most visible difference between the brig and the snow is the latter's "snow-mast", stepped directly behind the main mast.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://en.academic.ru/dic.nsf/cide/163048/Snow|title = Snow}}</ref> In contrast to the brig, where the gaff and boom attach directly to the main mast, a snow's gaff, and in later times, its boom, were attached to the snow-mast. The use of this characteristic snow-mast offered several advantages over attaching the gaff directly to the main mast.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://modelshipworld.com/index.php/topic/5958-question-on-the-rigging-of-the-mainsail-of-a-brigantine/|title = Question on the rigging of the Mainsail of a Brigantine| date=10 March 2014 }}</ref>

The yoke (or jaw) of the gaff and the lacing of the gaff sail on a snow could move freely on the snow mast, unhindered by the iron bands that held together the (main) mast, nor limited by the main yard. The gaff on the snow mast could be raised higher than the main yard and independently of it. The resulting freedom allowed a snow, in contrast to a brig, to fly a [[mainsail|main course]] without complications, as they typically did.<ref>Dik Vuik, Hans Haalmeijer (2006). ''Aken, tjalken en kraken''. Alkmaar, the Netherlands: Uitgeverij De Alk B.V.</ref>

However, in the late 18th century, brigs started to set main courses as well, which gave rise to the term snow-brig. The differences lessened even further when the snow-mast was replaced by a steel cable, at which point the term "snow-brig" gradually became interchangeable with the term "brig" and the term "snow" fell in disuse.

The twin brigs {{USS|Lawrence|1813|2}} and {{USS|Niagara|1813|2}}, American warships which participated in the [[Battle of Lake Erie]] in 1813, were both snow-brigs.

== See also ==
* [[Brig]]
* [[Brigantine]]
* [[Full-rigged ship]]

== Notes ==
{{Reflist}}

== References ==
* Hans Haalmeijer: ''Pinassen, fluiten en galjassen'' Uitgeverij De Alk B.V., Alkmaar, the Netherlands 2009.
* Karl Heinz Marquardt: ''Bemastung und Takelung von Schiffen des 18. Jahrhunderts''. Weltbild Verlag, Augsburg 1994.
* John Robinson, George Francis Dow: ''The Sailing Ships of New England 1607 – 1907''.  Marine Research Society, Salem, Mass 1922.
* Dik Vuik, Hans Haalmeijer: ''Aken, tjalken en kraken'', Uitgeverij De Alk B.V.,  Alkmaar, the Netherlands 2006.

== External links ==
* {{Wiktionary-inline|snow#Etymology_2|snow}}
* {{Commons category-inline|Snows (ship)}}

{{Sailing Vessels and Rigs}}
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[[Category:Sailing rigs and rigging]]
[[Category:Merchant sailing ship types]]
[[Category:Naval sailing ship types]]
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