Columbus
Replica Ship Nina to Visit Port of Redwood City for Public Tours
June 19-30
A replica of the Niña, one of the three ships
which Columbus sailed to the New World, will make its first visit to
the Port of Redwood City in eight years for an 11-day stay in June
20-30, Board Chairman Jack Castle announced today.
Self-guided tours June 19-30 from 9 a.m. to 7 p.m. each day at Port
of Redwood City Marina. Admission prices are $4 for adults, $3.50
for seniors, and $3 for students. Children 4-under are free.
Organizations wishing to schedule a guided tour with a minimum of 15
people can email columfnd@surfbvi.com or call 1-284-495-4618
The Niña was Columbus’ favorite. She made the entire first
voyage, bringing the Admiral safely home. When Columbus had the pick
of the whole Merchant Marine on his second voyage he selected her
out of 17 ships as his flagship for an exploratory voyage to Cuba,
and purchased a half share in her.
The original Niña, Pinta, and Santa Maria used by Columbus on his
first voyage across the Atlantic were common trading vessels. The
Santa Maria, which Columbus never liked, ran aground and sank on
Christmas Eve 1492 in Hispaniola (now Cape Haitien). She was a Nao,
a type of Cargo vessel. The Nina and Pinta were Caravels and were
used by explorers during the Age of Discovery. The Pinta returned
home and disappeared from history without a trace.
The Niña was Columbus’ favorite and for good reason. She was
named Santa Clara after the patron saint of Moguedr. A Spanish
vessel in those days had an official religious name, but was
generally known by a nickname which might be the feminine form of
her masters patronymic or of her home port. Santa Clara was always
called Nina, after her master-owner Juan Nino of Moguedr. Vincente
Yanez was her Captain on Columbus’ first voyage and he later
discovered the Amazon on an independent voyage in 1499.
The Nina logged at least 25,000 miles under Columbus’ command.
In 1986, the Columbus Foundation was formed in the British Virgin
Islands to raise money to build the three ships that Christopher
Columbus used in his encounter with the New World. There were no
authentic pictures of the Pinta, Niña or the Santa Maria, and all
of the so-called models, replicas, or reproductions that had been
built in the past merely represented what some artist, architect,
archaeologist or model ship builder thought what they ought to have
looked like.
Ships of this period were not built from a set of plans but from the
mental template in the head of the shipwright who based the
dimensions of the ship on a set of proportions. Different
proportions, varying from region to region were used for different
types; however, all were based on the length of the keel.
Several important design details, including such fundamental factors
as the number of masts and rigging specifics were clarified by data
from recent discoveries of 15th & 16th Century Spanish
shipwrecks in the Caribbean.
In December of 1991, the Niña left the banks of the Rio Uno in
Valenca, Brazil rigged as a four-master. It carried a crew of 11 and
arrived in Puntarenas, Costa Rica on January 23rd, 1992 to take part
in the film 1492 directed by Ridley Scott and starring Gerard
Depardieu. Its voyage of over 4,000 miles represents the first time
that a discovery caravel replica has made a successful unescorted
open ocean passage of any considerable distance. Since June of 1992
the Niña, has been continually touring and discovering new ports.
She has visited over 300 ports covering the East Coast of the U.S.,
the Great Lakes, the Missouri River as far Northward as Sioux City,
the Ohio River, the Tennessee River, the Illinois and Mississippi
River and the Gulf of Mexico.
