The penteconter, alt. spelling pentekonter, also transliterated as pentecontor or pentekontor was an ancient Greek

Greeks

The Greeks, also known as the Hellenes , are a nation and ethnic group native to Greece, Cyprus and neighboring regions. They also form a significant diaspora, with Greek communities established around the world....

 galley in use since the archaic period.

The penteconters emerged in an era when there was no distinction between merchant and war ships. They were versatile, long-range ships used for sea trade, piracy and warfare, capable of transporting freight or troops. A penteconter was rowed by fifty oarsmen, arranged in two rows of twenty five on each side of the ship. A midship mast

Mast (sailing)

The mast of a sailing vessel is a tall, vertical, or near vertical, spar, or arrangement of spars, which supports the sails. Large ships have several masts, with the size and configuration depending on the style of ship...

 with sail could also propel the ship under favourable wind. Penteconters were long and sharp-keeled ships, hence described as long vessels . They typically lacked
a full deck, therefore they were also called unfenced vessels .

According to contemporary calculations, penteconters are believed to have been between 28 and 33
meters long, approximately 4 meters wide and capable of reaching a top speed of 9 knots (18km/h). Ancient Greeks also used the triaconter (also triacontor), a vessel with 30 oars. There is a general agreement that the trireme

Trireme

A trireme was a type of galley, a Hellenistic-era warship that was used by the ancient maritime civilizations of the Mediterranean, especially the Phoenicians, ancient Greeks and Romans.The trireme derives its name from its three rows of oars on each side, manned with one man per oar...

, the primary warship

Hellenistic-era warships

From the 4th century BC on, new types of oared warships appeared in the Mediterranean Sea, superseding the trireme and transforming naval warfare. Ships became increasingly bigger and heavier, including some of the largest wooden ships ever constructed...

 of classical antiquity

Classical antiquity

Classical antiquity is a broad term for a long period of cultural history centered on the Mediterranean Sea, comprising the interlocking civilizations of ancient Greece and ancient Rome, collectively known as the Greco-Roman world...

, evolved from the penteconter via the bireme

Bireme

A bireme is an ancient Hellenistic-era warship with two decks of oars, probably invented by the Phoenicians. It typically was about long with a maximum beam width of around . It was modified from the penteconter, a ship that had only one set of oars on each side, the bireme having two sets of oars...

. The penteconter remained in use until the Hellenistic period

Hellenistic period

The Hellenistic period or Hellenistic era describes the time which followed the conquests of Alexander the Great. It was so named by the historian J. G. Droysen. During this time, Greek cultural influence and power was at its zenith in Europe and Asia...

, when they became complemented and eventually replaced by other designs, such as the lembos, the hemiolia

Hemiolia

Hemiolis can refer to:* Hemiola, a musical pattern* A type of galley developed in the 4th century BC...

and the liburnians

Liburnians

The Liburnians were an ancient Illyrian tribe inhabiting the district called Liburnia, a coastal region of the northeastern Adriatic between the rivers Arsia and Titius in what is now Croatia....

.

External links

• "Argo" sails again; article referring to a reconstruction of an ancient pentekonter.