I have painted . . . a sailing ship!
The severed dragon claw anchor for which the ship is named.
You can fit a lot of miniatures on this ship. Also, a lifeboat. Or rowboat.
A nice day to relax on the deck.
Nothing will befall the ship when it's manned by this crew!
"So this is she?", Jack Aubrey, Vice Admiral of the Royal Navy, cast is his experienced eye all over the vessel.
ReplyDelete"Named 'Dragonclaw'", replied Stephen Maturin, his life-long sailing companion, physician, gentleman botanist, and lethal spy for His Majesty.
Aubrey glanced at his old friend, "You're mother-in-law's name."
"Just so."
"Hmph," said Aubrey, making a dismissive noise. "The main yards are scandalized, the vangs are shot, and the spinnaker is lost. Nor is there any visible jib. The rudder is fouled and the helm is on the wrong hanse. Not to mention that the wheel racings appear to be covered in ochre."
"Yellow ochre," added Stephen Maturin, with evident pride. "I sense, Jack, that your appraisal of noble Dragonclaw does not match mine in some ways."
"She is quite thick around the midships," Aubrey noted.
Maturin smiled. "And so are you, Jack, yet you still manage."
Aubrey chuckled. "And this anchor? It amazes completely."
"The real claw from a real dragon, I am told."
"Judging by its size, I should not wish to be around when that beast returns for its lost foot."
Maturin agreed, slapping his friend on the shoulder: "Then we should set sail at once!"
I have the Aubrey/Maturin books on my e-reader now...where in the timeline should I imagine this particular vignette?
ReplyDeleteAfter "21", seeing as a) dragons don't appear in any of the canon novels and b) Jack is fat.
ReplyDeleteI hope you enjoy the books! I've read the entire series seven times, I think. The first time was a blur of nautical wizardry - it helps to have a dictionary. In the middle, I became really interested in the food, the culture, the language, and the characters. Towards the end, I began to learn more about the true history and then the nature of Patrick O'Brien himself - the latter, unfortunately, is extremely unhelpful. Try to avoid his personal life until you've read all the books.