THE 18TH CENTURY Swedish Ship“Götheborg" was built at the Terra Nova shipyard, one of four large shipyards in Stockholm in the 1700s. She was launched in 1738.The shipyard area, which was situated where the road Strandvägen now runs, had previously been a reeded inlet that was filled in: hence the name Terra Nova, which means ‘new land´ in Latin. Some 200 people worked at the shipyard, half of whom were carpenters. At the time there was an infrastructure around the shipyards, with subcontracted production of everything from nails to rope. There was also an organisation responsible for purchasing timber, and there were many shipyard workers. Consequently, an East Indiaman could be finished in as little as 18 months.Terra Nova was also the name given to the new shipyard, construction of which began in 1994, for the new ship at the old Eriksberg shipyard site in Göteborg. The Eriksberg yard was originally built on reclaimed new land along the river bank, so the name Terra Nova was very apt here too. All that was left of Eriksberg were two thirds of building berth no. 6, the large gantry crane and the dry dock. A building berth was exactly what was required, and the new ship´s hall was built over the top of it. A timber workshop, a forge and a rigging workshop with a sail loft were all eventually built, as well as staff areas, a restaurant, conference facilities and offices. An exhibition hall and shop were set up in part of the large ship´s hall.

Oak timber is hard, strong and resistant to decay as it contains tannin. This is why oak has always been by far the most popular wood for shipbuilding in Europe. Three-quarters of The Swedish Ship “Götheborg" is made of oak. Oak has been used for beams, knees and planking. More than a thousand oak logs from southern Sweden and Denmark have been used. Other important tree species include pine, spruce and elm. Pine has mainly been used for the ribs, decks and masts, spruce for the yards and spars, and elm for the blocks. Large volumes of raw linseed oil, turpen-tine and tar have been used to impregnate the timber.The oak logs had a diameter of at least 60 centimetres at chest height, which is equivalent to a circumference of 180 centimetres, and a usable length of at least six metres. It takes between 150 and 200 years for an oak to grow to the dimensions required for shipbuilding. Crooked oak has been used for some parts of the ship, such as the knees. These parts were measured out in situ.When an oak grows really old, the heart wood in the centre of the tree begins to rot. This eventually causes cavities to form in the trunk. The rot continues to develop while the oak is still alive, but the damage is not visible externally. In the end, the oak falls under its own weight. When procuring oak, the quality and the size of the roots were evaluated, as well as a further assessment after felling to check the quality of the heartwood. Many people have kindly donated oak for the hull, as well as pine and spruce for the masts and yards respectively. After sawing, the oak must be left to dry. The drying time varies depending on what the oak is to be used for. For example, oak for the planking has to dry for at least two years. Some 500,000 m³ of oak forest are felled every year in Sweden, of which 200,000 m³ are sawn. The remaining 60 per cent is used to produce energy and for household require-ments. Only around 12,500 m³ are thick enough to be used as ship´s timber. The “Götheborg" required approximately 3,000 m³ of oak logs, a requirement that extended over some four years. In the 18th century, the oak for Swedish shipbuilding came primarily from Germany and Poland. According to the law at the time, all thick oak in Sweden was the property of the Crown, in order to safeguard the supply of oak for building men-of-war.