Rigging
ropes, cables and chains which support masts of sailing ships
Rigging comprises the system of ropes, cables and chains, which support and control a sailing ship or sail boat's masts and sails. Standing rigging is the fixed rigging that supports masts including shrouds and stays. Running rigging is rigging which adjusts the position of the vessel's sails and spars including halyards, braces, sheets and vangs.
Etymology
According to the Encyclopædia Britannica Eleventh Edition "rigging" derives from Anglo-Saxon wrigan or wringing, "to clothe". The same source points out that "rigging" a sailing vessel refers to putting all the components in place to allow it to function, including the masts, spars, sails and the rigging.
History
Theophrastus in his History of Plants (c. 300 BCE) states that the rigging on King Antigonus' fleet was made from papyrus reed.
Types of rigging
Rigging is divided into two classes, standing, which supports the mast (and bowsprit), and running, which controls the orientation of the sails and their degree of reefing. Configurations differ for each type of rigging, between fore-and-aft rigged vessels and square-rigged vessels.
Standing
Standing rigging is cordage which is fixed in position.
“Rigging” enters the record as ropes, cables and chains which support masts of sailing ships. Crown Archives preserves that source wording while asking what Rigging, ropes and cables can confirm, complicate or overturn.
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This entry incorporates text from “Rigging” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.