Ship Plank

The use of copper tacks and bronze fitting indicates the plank was from the hull of a ship which was once sheathed with copper alloy. Sheathing of wooden hulls dates back centuries when a second wooden sacrificial layer of timber was fixed to the hull. This outer layer was then fouled with growing weed and attacked by Teredo worms, then it could be removed and replaced, leaving the inner hull intact. Copper sheathing was known about in the middle 1700's but was deemed too expensive to do. it was not until the 1700's and the American war of Independance when the British needed all its ships seaworthy and not going under lengthy repairs, that the use of copper sheathing became wide spread.Copper sheathing was generally done on larger ships, while smaller vessels could be more easily cleaned by hand scrubbing.
Information provided by B Taylor, Busselton.