Carving out a career
Ships' Figureheads, by Andrew Peters
The decoration of ships with figureheads was a way to present the might of military and mercantile power for centuries. These days, the skills needed to make these sculptures are kept alive by experts such as Andrew Peters, who has worked on restoration projects such as the Cutty Sark tea clipper.
In Peters' fascinating new history of his profession, he explores the life and times of two UK families with generations of figurehead-carving expertise: the Hellyers in Hampshire and the Dickersons in Plymouth.
The book is a treasure trove for family history researchers, as it contains extensive family trees of these carver families, and a full list of the figurehead names and the ships they were mounted on.
Ships' Figureheads: Famous Carving Families
By Andrew Peters
Whittles Publishing, £18.99
ISBN: 978 18499 55836
Buy this book in the Nautilus Bookshop
While you're there, why not browse the rest of the titles in our unique maritime bookshop, which sells all the books reviewed on these pages.
Buy nowMore Books
Women who went from unsung to unstoppable
Seafaring Women Through History by Jo StanleyMaritime historian Dr Jo Stanley is back with a celebration of trailblazing female mariners – blending rich historical insight with contemporary perspectives to reflect on what it means to be a woman working at sea.
Titanic connections: the other ships on the scene
The Titanic Fleet: the ships involved in the Titanic disaster By Richard M. JonesRichard Jones has explored another aspect of the sinking – the stories of 30 other vessels that were connected in some way to the famous liner.
A different perspective on Titanic's sinking
Titanic’s Lifeboats: Disaster and Survival During the Liner’s Sinking By James W. BancroftFor the true collector, Titanic’s Lifeboats presents the harrowing stories of each of the lifeboats launched on that fateful evening, drawn from the testimonies of the survivors.
Female MN war veterans brought to the fore
Supposed Killed or Drowned by Enemy Action at Sea, by Nina BakerThe people whose lives Baker explores in Supposed Killed or Drowned by Enemy Action at Sea are not relatives of hers, but they are part of the Merchant Navy family. They are the Scottish women who served and died in the crews of MN vessels in the First and Second World Wars.