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 The
Rogers Ship Model Collection includes 108 ship and boat models of the
sailing ship era dating from 1650 to 1850. It contains scale models
built for the British Admiralty and original display cabinets from the
17th century. The collection, bequeathed to the Naval Academy in
1935 by Colonel Henry Huddleston Rogers, is one of the most valuable of
its type in the world. Since 1993 the models have been exhibited
in The Class of 1951 Gallery of Ships, located on the ground floor of
Preble Hall.
The
Ship Model Gallery
In the first room
of the gallery three models built to the same scale illustrate design
changes which took place in British warships between 1650 and 1715. For
example, the elaborate carving gradually diminished, a cost-saving measure
ordered by the naval administration. The same models also demonstrate
changes in the shape and rake of the bow and stern.
The main exhibit
space in the next room houses the majority of the dockyard models. They
are laid out in chronological order beginning on the right and continuing
around the room in a counterclockwise direction.
The models represent
almost every rate and type of warship built between the mid-1600s and
the 1840s, from a huge "first rate" ship-of-the-line carrying
100 guns to a "sixth rate" vessel of only twenty guns. In addition
to the larger models, the main gallery displays a royal yacht, an admiral's
barge, and several ships' boats. Completed models may have open-framed
or solid hulls. They can be either fully rigged or unrigged.
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Cases
and Prints in the Ship Model Gallery
 Many
models are displayed in original antique cases built specifically for
their exhibition. The cases from the William and Mary and Queen Anne periods
are as valuable as the objects they hold. They make the Academy's
collection truly unique.
Between the cases
are several reproductions of prints from the Museum's Beverley R. Robinson
Collection. The images illustrate naval combat involving ships like
those represented by the models.
Within the Gallery
is a space reserved for modern models of ships from the Age of Sail.
Included are several outstanding examples depicting early American fighting
ships, including the Continental frigate Hancock and Jean-Paul
Jones' famous Bonhomme Richard. Also in this section of the
gallery is a large window into the model curator's workshop through which
visitors may view the continuous process of model conservation.
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Bone
Model Display
 The
Museum's bone models are displayed in a darkened corridor behind the front
gallery cases. These artifacts were carved from the bones of the
beef rations allowed French prisoners-of-war during their incarceration
in England.
The crafting of this
type of model was characteristic of the period of the Anglo-French wars
(1756-1815), and most of these works were produced during the Napoleonic
conflicts. While not built to scale, these miniature vessels are
every bit as thorough in their workmanship as their wooden counterparts.
The Naval Academy's bone model collection ranks as one of the largest
in the world. The exhibit is a poignant, fascinating tribute to
the skill of prisoners who were kept in deplorable conditions for years
on end.
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