Scale: 1:24. A contemporary full hull model of a ship’s launch (1850) measuring approximately 36 feet in length by 8 feet in the beam. Although these craft were carried on board the larger warships, they also worked in and around the ports and Royal Dockyards. This model illustrates a launch that is fitted with a large davit, which was used for laying out anchors for mooring a ship, and for recovering them if they became snagged on the seabed. The large metal davit was hinged at the inboard end, which allowed it to be stowed inside the hull when not in use. By the 1850s, the hull would have been built in carvel construction, edge to edge planking, or the newly introduced double-diagonal system, which was both lighter and stronger, although more difficult to repair.