First rate, 100-gun ship, built  in Woolwich, a borough of London, England, in 1637 under King Charles I.  The ship itself cost L6,800 and then was sent to the carvers and gilders, which cost an additional L65,586.  That didn’t make King Charles very popular to tax the people twice for the same ship, especially since he was very good at spending their money.  He finally lost his head over his extravagance, and his son, Charles II, was sent north for safety as the Reformation took place under the direction of Oliver Cromwell. Sovereign was the largest and most ornate ship to travel the seas for a good many years.  She was built by Phineas Pett, and considered by many to be 150 years ahead of her time.  The piece of timber that made up her keelson was so heavy it required 28 oxen and four horses to pull it overland.  Only black and gold [real gold] could be seen above the water, and it was called the “Golden Devil” by the Dutch.  She burned on January 27, 1696, set afire by a forgotten candle in one of the cabins.  [The ship outlived both King Charles I and King Charles II.  Charles I was beheaded in 1649; Charles II died in 1685.] The Model Built by Ed Marple, circa 1982 Scale:  3/16”    Case:  H 48”  L 51”  W 20 ½” Below the waterline is white holly; above is Swiss pear up to the main deck, with the double wales in ebony.  The black you see is ebony, and each carving on her is handmade of boxwood, gilded in gold leaf and then placed on her.  The cannons were also made of boxwood because the originals were brass and later gilded. The bowsprit is offset so that, under the deck, it will be able to pass the foremast, and is very long because the foremast is so very far forward. The beak head bulkhead with the gun ports are each embellished with a lion’s head.  Notice the cathead with their supporting figures. The tops are different in this era as can be seen on the model.  The figure head of King Edgar, The Peaceful, on horseback, trampling the seven kings who formerly ruled England, is in boxwood.  King Edgar is dressed in clothing of the period, complete with riding coat with oversized sleeves; on his head is a brimmed hat of the kind that is so noticeable in books on costumes in the 10^th and 11^th centuries.  He sits astride his rearing horse with his enemies lying below him either dead or in the throes of death.  “Peaceful” would hardly describe the figurehead. Each cat head is held up by a centaur, the half-man, half-horse figure of Greek Mythology.  The end of each cat head is decorated with a carved lion’s head.  A cherub on a lion’s back sits directly above the stem post.  The side friezes are decorated with the coins of the Roman Empire, signs of the Zodiac, with the drums, shields and cannon, carved in boxwood.  Notice the oversize lantern; six men could stand in it.