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Carrack

Type Object Region Iberian Peninsula Time c. 1475–1700

The carrack (Portuguese nau) was a large ocean-going sailing ship developed in Iberia in the late 15th century, with square sails, a broad hull, and …

Timeline

  1. c. 1471–1480Lisbon · LisbonIn the 1470s the carrack took shape in Portuguese shipyards as a long-distance vessel capable of carrying large quantities of cargo and personnel; its deep draft and square-sail configuration suited downwind ocean sailing, and it became the royal fleet's main cargo ship.
  2. c. 1480–1600global ocean routes · Pacific OceanCarracks carried bulk cargoes such as spices, silk, and silver across the oceans, and were imitated by many European nations, becoming the standard large sailing ship of global maritime trade and colonial expansion in the 16th–17th centuries.

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