Pirate Spyglass TY-001-014
Fully functional pirate spy glass with faux wood-gain finish. Includes map of shipwrecks and sunken treasures. Meets CPSIA safety standards.
Minimum order quantity - 6
Box Text:
The names Blackbeard, Captain Kidd, Black Sam Bellamy, Anne Bonny, and Mary Read strike terror in the hearts of all honest seafarers.
Who were the pirates? Daring figures who plundered treasure ships and returned home with hoards of gold? Brutal sea thieves who flew the colors of the crossbones and skull and showed no mercy to their victims? Bold swashbucklers who financed travel by nautical theft? The term “pirate” means simply “one who commits robbery on the high seas”; but the men who chose this life could be “privateers,” sea raiders with a government license to pillage enemy ships; “buccaneers,” 17th-century pirates who menaced the Spanish in the Caribbean; or “corsairs,” privateers and pirates who roved the Mediterranean. All were lured by the promise of riches, power, and freedom.
Pirates usually determined a ship’s nationality first. Then they ran up that country’s flag on the pirate ship so they appeared to be of a friendly nature. Now the thieves drew close to the unsuspecting ship. Suddenly, the pirates fired a warning cannon blast. Musket balls flew and a wounded helmsman, the first target, abandoned the ship’s wheel. As the ship drifted, screaming pirates pulled it closer with grappling hooks and swarmed onto the deck of the helpless ship, brandishing pistols and swinging cutlasses. The pirates took the passengers and crew hostage, seizing any valuables, coins, gold, silver, or jewelry they might have. Most merchant ships carried little “treasure,” but they carried cargo such as grain, molasses, and kegs of rum, as well as supplies of rope, tools, and ammunition. The pirates divided the booty, according to strict rules, with the captain and officers receiving larger shares. Finally, the pirates scuttled the ship or perhaps stole her too.
Success for pirates meant outwitting, outsailing, and outfighting the chosen victim. Navigation was primitive and yet crucial. Pirates had to position their ships along the routes taken by merchant or treasure ships relying on a combination of knowledge, common sense, and luck.
Ahoy, Matey! Whether sighting land or the next victim, the spyglass or telescope was a vital navigator's tool. A pirate perched on a mast or simply standing squarely on the deck of a galleon could see distant objects with the aid of his spyglass, nicknamed the “bring ‘em near.” Even if the man could not see land, he could judge its direction and distance by observing clouds and seabirds through the spyglass.
Once the dreaded scourge of the sea, pirates left an indelible mark on the pages of maritime history and the imagination of generations.