Развитие образцов отечественного корабельного вооружения, представленного в моделях кораблей из собрания Центрального военно-морского музея имени императора Петра Великого

Abstract

The article attempts for the first time to consider ship models not only as sources on the history of shipbuilding in general but also on ship weapons in particular. The relevance of the work lies in the importance of preserving the material and historical heritage of the Russian fleet, and insufficient coverage in historical science of the experience of using ship models in the interests of the Navy. The Central Naval Museum has a significant collection of ship models, ship mechanisms, and naval weapons, according to which, due to the accurate transfer of appearance, design, scale, and careful detailing of the elements and parts of weapons, it is possible to study a particular period in the history of the fleet and the development of weapons. Thus, a model of a warship, being in the halls of a museum or in the storage, does not lose its function as an element of the project, while remaining a historical relic, an artifact of shipbuilding thought, and often an object of decorative and applied art. Materials stored in museums can serve practical purposes. Using these examples, new generations of Russians get acquainted with the visible chronicle of the Navy and the destinies of remarkable ships within the walls of the museum. The purpose of the article is to attract attention to objects from the museum’s collection not only of specialists in the field of naval history, shipbuilders, and design engineers but also of people interested in the fleet. The paper aims to establish a connection between the accumulated experience of ancestors and the work of contemporaries. The author used the historical-comparative method traditionally applied in historical science, which allows us to talk about the development of classes and types of ships, as well as naval weapons, in the domestic fleet. As a result of the study, the author offers a new look at widely and little-known facts from the history of our fleet and presents a modern understanding of the study of ship models. The most striking examples of such objects from the museum collection are shown.