Description

Fully rigged model of a Scottish Zulu-type fishing vessel. The hull shows the classic double ended shape, with a plumb bow and a heavily raked sternpost. The simplified rig has two masts, rigging that indicates the lug sails, and a long, retractable bowsprit. The deck is dark wood with blue accents, showing a partially open fish hold and open access to the furnished cabin. Hull is black, with copper below the waterline.

Zulu-type fishing craft were developed around 1880 for the Moray Firth herring fisheries. They combined two styles of local fishing craft, scaffies and fifies, into a new style that was fast, powerful, and maneuverable.

This model was made by Roderick Matheson, who was born in Scotland and sailed on Zulus as a boy. Matheson later emigrated to the United States, where he found work helping students in MIT’s Department of Naval Architecture with build models for their ship design experiments. Matheson also built models for the Department’s Hart Nautical Collection, and, in 1968, got permission to build this model of Muirneag to add to the collection.