Model Ships

We can clearly see, for example, the huge leap in naval shipbuilding associated with the Industrial Revolution. New technologies such as steam engines, armour plating and more powerful artillery led to the replacement of sailing ships with steamships built of iron and, later, steel. For a long time technical scale models played a crucial part in the designing of new ships. In 1817 the Dutch Navy Department founded its ‘model room’ to preserve model ships and technical scale models. As time passed the purpose of these models gradually changed: technical drawings and specifications become increasingly important to the design process and the models acquired a more representational function. In 1883-1889 the Navy Department transferred its model room collection to the Rijksmuseum.