Existing comment:
This is the iron firehearth aboard the model of the Leda or Phoenix, both British frigates from 1783. It is positioned beneath the forecastle. Officers' food was grilled on a spit on the hearth's fore side (right), while food for the crew was boiled in copper kettles. The part of the hearth projecting upward is the flue to carry away the smoke.
This photograph shows the brick firehearth on Model No. 89, an unidentified Third Rate of c. 1735. The hearth is located in its customary place beneath the forecastle. The bench next to it must have been a warm spot to hover on a cold, blustery night! The sides of the hearth are reinforced with panels of wood braced with metal bands to keep the bricks from shaking apart. Hearths made of iron replaced brick ovens during the 1740s and '50s. |