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Painting_Agency t1_jckgt9p wrote

Reply to comment by RabidMortal in Grad Student Explores Ancient Warfare With Naval Ram Project by kratos2025

Probably attached with large nails. They don't look like they'd get "stuck" - no barbs or protrusions. The other hull would cave in and be too fragmented to bind the ramming vessel.

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Discount_gentleman t1_jcl2cgi wrote

Historically, getting the ram stuck was a serious problem. I have a vague memory of reading that proper tactics dictated back-rowing (i.e. tapping the breaks) just before impact, with the goal being more to deliver a shock that pops every joint in the target, rather than busting through and getting your ram deeply embedded in the target.

However, I've had a few beers since I read that, and so it might be worth checking with a better source.

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Painting_Agency t1_jcl4beb wrote

I'm sure there was a whole technique to it, and I believe you beers or no.

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Discount_gentleman t1_jcl6mbg wrote

Thanks. Also, the shape of the ram (3 wide flat bars rather than a pointed beak) highlight the goal of preventing it from going too deeply into the target.

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Discount_gentleman t1_jclgbdr wrote

Not to riff on this too much, but the design is quite elegant. It is the prow of a warship, so it cuts through the water cleanly, presenting thin lines that the water slides by. But when faced with a solid object like a ship, it acts as a solid rectangle. It hits with all the weight of the ship as a hammer or mallet, not as a spike, designed to shatter but not to penetrate. And back in the day, ships would be more likely held together with mortise and tenon, not nails, and be vulnerable to being snapped. The target would be swamped in just a few minutes from multiple small leaks and become unmaneuverable, knocked completely out of action.

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pickleer t1_jcn5tl7 wrote

Thank you! This is the most plausible answer I have read yet, after wondering for decades why a single-pointed spike wouldn't be more efficient. This totally explains the planar-trident shape, water flow, and intended effect.

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