Ancient Egyptian ships

Intact vessel from Ancient Egypt

thumb|The tessarakonteres, 1858 illustration Tessarakonteres (, "forty-rowed"), or simply "forty", was a very large catamaran galley reportedly built in the Hellenistic period by Ptolemy IV Philopator of Egypt. It was described by a number of ancient sources, including a lost work by Callixenus of Rhodes and surviving texts by Athenaeus and Plutarch. According to these descriptions, supported by modern research by Lionel Casson, the enormous size of the vessel made it impractical and it was built only as a prestige vessel, rather than an effective warship. The name "forty" refers not to the nu

thumb|250px|Drawing of Ptolemy IV's Thalamegos, by Nicolaes Witsen, 1671

archaeological site in Egypt

ancient Egyptian type of ship