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Ariel (clipper)
Encyclopedia
Ariel was a clipper
ship famous for making fast voyages between China and England in the late 1860s.
Ariel was a full rigged ship
of 853 ton
s net register, measuring 197.4 feet (60.2 m) x 33.9 feet x 21 feet (6.4 m). She was designed by William Rennie, and built in 1865 by Robert Steele & Co., Greenock
for Shaw, Lowther & Maxton of London
. Like most tea clippers she was composite built, of timber planking over iron frames.
Ariel is most famous for almost winning The Great Tea Race of 1866
, an unofficial race between Foochow, China and London
with the first tea crop of the 1866 season.
and Serica on the 30th. On 6 September Taeping
docked twenty minutes ahead of Ariel, and about two hours ahead of Serica. Fiery Cross and Taitsing arrived two days later.
Taeping
, under Captain McKinnon, owned by Captain Alexander Rodgers of Cellardyke, Fife, drew less water than Ariel and was able to tie up in the London docks twenty minutes ahead of Ariel, under Captain Keay, 99 days and almost 16000 miles (25,749.4 km) out of Foochow. Taeping
divided her winnings of 10 shillings per ton with the crew of Ariel and Captain McKinnon divided the captain's £100 with Captain Keay, who hailed from Anstruther.
With the completion of the Suez Canal
the tea trade was taken over by steamships and most of the clippers transferred to the Australian trade, carrying general cargo to either Sydney
or Melbourne
, and returning with wool — for which a premium price was also paid on the first shipments of the season.
fitting with the gothic-script letter A were found on King Island in Bass Strait
. It was believed to have come from the missing vessel, which, if the assumption was correct, probably foundered in the Southern Ocean
after rounding the Cape of Good Hope
.
Clipper
A clipper was a very fast sailing ship of the 19th century that had three or more masts and a square rig. They were generally narrow for their length, could carry limited bulk freight, small by later 19th century standards, and had a large total sail area...
ship famous for making fast voyages between China and England in the late 1860s.
Ariel was a full rigged ship
Full rigged ship
A full rigged ship or fully rigged ship is a sailing vessel with three or more masts, all of them square rigged. A full rigged ship is said to have a ship rig....
of 853 ton
Ton
The ton is a unit of measure. It has a long history and has acquired a number of meanings and uses over the years. It is used principally as a unit of weight, and as a unit of volume. It can also be used as a measure of energy, for truck classification, or as a colloquial term.It is derived from...
s net register, measuring 197.4 feet (60.2 m) x 33.9 feet x 21 feet (6.4 m). She was designed by William Rennie, and built in 1865 by Robert Steele & Co., Greenock
Greenock
Greenock is a town and administrative centre in the Inverclyde council area in United Kingdom, and a former burgh within the historic county of Renfrewshire, located in the west central Lowlands of Scotland...
for Shaw, Lowther & Maxton of London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Like most tea clippers she was composite built, of timber planking over iron frames.
Ariel is most famous for almost winning The Great Tea Race of 1866
The Great Tea Race of 1866
The Great Tea Race of 1866 was an unofficial competition between the fastest clipper ships of the China tea trade to bring the season's first crop of tea to London in 1866....
, an unofficial race between Foochow, China and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
with the first tea crop of the 1866 season.
Great Tea Race of 1866
Premium prices were paid for the first consignment to reach London. The clipper Fiery Cross left Foochow on 29 May and Ariel, TaepingTaeping
The Taeping was a clipper ship built in 1863 by Robert Steele of Greenock. Taeping participated in The Great Tea Race of 1866 and narrowly defeated the Ariel...
and Serica on the 30th. On 6 September Taeping
Taeping
The Taeping was a clipper ship built in 1863 by Robert Steele of Greenock. Taeping participated in The Great Tea Race of 1866 and narrowly defeated the Ariel...
docked twenty minutes ahead of Ariel, and about two hours ahead of Serica. Fiery Cross and Taitsing arrived two days later.
Taeping
The Taeping was a clipper ship built in 1863 by Robert Steele of Greenock. Taeping participated in The Great Tea Race of 1866 and narrowly defeated the Ariel...
, under Captain McKinnon, owned by Captain Alexander Rodgers of Cellardyke, Fife, drew less water than Ariel and was able to tie up in the London docks twenty minutes ahead of Ariel, under Captain Keay, 99 days and almost 16000 miles (25,749.4 km) out of Foochow. Taeping
Taeping
The Taeping was a clipper ship built in 1863 by Robert Steele of Greenock. Taeping participated in The Great Tea Race of 1866 and narrowly defeated the Ariel...
divided her winnings of 10 shillings per ton with the crew of Ariel and Captain McKinnon divided the captain's £100 with Captain Keay, who hailed from Anstruther.
With the completion of the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
the tea trade was taken over by steamships and most of the clippers transferred to the Australian trade, carrying general cargo to either Sydney
Sydney
Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people...
or Melbourne
Melbourne
Melbourne is the capital and most populous city in the state of Victoria, and the second most populous city in Australia. The Melbourne City Centre is the hub of the greater metropolitan area and the Census statistical division—of which "Melbourne" is the common name. As of June 2009, the greater...
, and returning with wool — for which a premium price was also paid on the first shipments of the season.
Loss of the ship
Ariel sailed from London for Sydney on 31 January 1872 under the command of Captain Talbot, but failed to arrive. Around August 1872 the remains of a teak-built ship's life-boat carrying a brassBrass
Brass is an alloy of copper and zinc; the proportions of zinc and copper can be varied to create a range of brasses with varying properties.In comparison, bronze is principally an alloy of copper and tin...
fitting with the gothic-script letter A were found on King Island in Bass Strait
Bass Strait
Bass Strait is a sea strait separating Tasmania from the south of the Australian mainland, specifically the state of Victoria.-Extent:The International Hydrographic Organization defines the limits of the Bass Strait as follows:...
. It was believed to have come from the missing vessel, which, if the assumption was correct, probably foundered in the Southern Ocean
Southern Ocean
The Southern Ocean comprises the southernmost waters of the World Ocean, generally taken to be south of 60°S latitude and encircling Antarctica. It is usually regarded as the fourth-largest of the five principal oceanic divisions...
after rounding the Cape of Good Hope
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
.