Stefano Vignaroli - In The Lion's Sign

The servant who had helped him dress, took a silver chalice and had his hands washed with rosewater. Then he invited him to sit at the table. The other servants placed in front of him, in sequence, three trays. In the first one there were some cups, some filled with donkey milk, some with Sicilian orange juice, others with steaming cow’s milk. A second tray contained sweet food, milk bread, donuts, cookies, marzipan, pinocchiate 4, cannoli 5with cream, puffed, arranged in saucers decorated with large salad leaves. The third tray was dedicated to salty foods, anchovies, capers, asparagus, shrimps, accompanied by a cup filled with sturgeon eggs with sugar. Apart, in some jugs, there were wines, from muscatel to trebbiano to fermented sweet wine. Andrea was afraid that, once aboard the galleon, everything in his stomach would go up to his jaws. He would have vomited everything he had ingested. But the scents that tickled his nostrils were too tempting, so he soaked some cookies and two donuts in donkey milk, gobbling behind the cup of warm cow’s milk. He was careful not to touch the salty foods and, above all, the wines. Satisfied, he let out a loud burp, after which he declared himself ready to reach the Venetian boat.

Seen up close, the Venetian ship was really impressive. Andrea had never seen such a large vessel, not even that of the Turkish pirates faced more than a year ago. He noticed with pleasure how the galleon was extremely stable. The waves passed under the hull, but the mammoth ship, in fact, just did not seem to move. His attentive eye did not miss the curious metal panels, which covered the wooden sides of the boat in several places. While trying to understand what they were for, his attention was drawn by the ship’s captain. Tommaso De’ Foscari was hurling himself out of his arms, beckoning the young man to go on board through a comfortable walkway placed between the pier and the left side of the ship. Not without some fear, Andrea reached the bridge, greeting his new companion with a bow. While he was handing the banner to Foscari with the rampant lion, to be hoisted on the flagpole near the other flag representing the lion of St. Marco, he realized that being on top of that ship did not bother him at all. The galleon was a different thing than the one on which he had lost two of his best companions, the Mancino and Fiorano Santoni. The movements due to the lapping of the waters under the hull were not felt at all.

«As you can see, my dear Franciolino, this is one of the best ships in the fleet of the Serenissima Republic», the ship Captain began to explain to him, surrounding his shoulder with an arm. «It’s a very large ship and therefore it is very stable. But at the same time it’s also agile and easy to manoeuvre. In addition to the wind it can be propelled, if necessary, by two orders of rowers. Among the crew, servants, rowers and soldiers, there are more than five hundred men on board. Almost an army. And that’s not all. It’s a very safe ship. I noticed, a little while ago, how you were looking at the metal bulkheads on the sides. They protect the hull from the enemy’s incendiary balls. When needed, they can be lifted, creating a barrier even higher than the walls of the ship itself, and between one bulkhead and another, fire vents can be inserted, bombards capable of throwing explosive projectiles at opponents. But there is even more. On board we have as many as one hundred harquebusiers, men capable of using in an excellent way the new deadly firearm invented by the French. I can’t wait to show you this war machine at work.»

Continuing to speak, the Captain had led Andrea to the bridge, where he had taken the helm, explaining how in marine jargon the front part of the ship was called the bow and the rear stern, the left side port and the right side starboard. Then he began to shout orders to the sailors in order to prepare the ship to sail. The orders, pronounced in strict marine jargon, were completely incomprehensible to Andrea.

Drop anchor - Retract the tires - Lower the mainsail - Drop the pimp - Hoist the foresails, they were all commands whose meaning he did not fully understand. In any case, he could observe how, at each Captain’s command, the crew moved in a fast and precise way, without any uncertainty. In short, the galleon detached itself from the dock and set sail, starting sailing north, with a nice sirocco wind that inflated the sails to the maximum. Foscari held the rudder firmly in his hand and continued to explain to Andrea what he was doing.

«The Adriatic Sea is a closed and also rather narrow sea between the Italian and Dalmatian shores. And therefore it is quite safe. It is unlikely that sudden storms break out, as they do when you cross the ocean to reach the New World. However, we have not to underestimate the fact sometimes the wind turns and becomes dangerous. The “Garbino” 6, the wind that blows from the land, can lift the sea and cause even massive swells. In addition it makes it difficult to steer the ship, as it pushes the boats out to sea. As you can see, we always try to sail rather offshore to avoid the shallows, but always in view of the coast, so that we never lose course. The “Garbino” can fool you, making you lose sight of the coastline and therefore disorienting navigators, especially when the sky is cloudy and you can’t get oriented thanks to the sun and the stars. We sailors fear another wind, the “bura”, the “Buriàn” 7, which brings snow and frost, and blows especially in the winter season. The “bura” is sometimes so strong to sweep away everything it finds, including the sailors on deck who, if they end up in the icy waters, have little hope of surviving.»

«My dear Tommaso», Andrea interrupted him, by now having become familiar with his new friend. «I must confess that I am very afraid of the sea. I don’t even know how to swim and I had a very bad experience last year off the coast of Senigallia. So, I would prefer you to avoid telling me certain details. You already gave me the creeps. If you go on like this, I will be nauseous and then I will be in pain for the rest of the navigation. Today instead I can see a beautiful day, the wind that is caressing us is warm and pleasant, and this ship is so stable that I do not feel any discomfort. Therefore, let me enjoy this voyage, and maybe tell me about your exploits as a warrior. I know that you fought against the Turks on Dalmatian soil... But, what I see there towards the shore is the outline of the Rocca Roveresca? Have we already reached Senigallia?»

«The ship is fast and the wind is favourable. Yes, we have already reached Senigallia. And since you talked about Turks, be ready to meet them, because these waters are infested by Sultan Sèlim’s pirates.»

«I know this very well. Ah, if I could make them pay for what they made me lose a year ago! Two of my best friends lost their lives in the clash with those unfaithful bastards. And I got away with it by a whisker.»

«Excellent, my dear Franciolino. So, if we are going to have to fight them, while I will govern the ship, I’ll leave you to give the orders to gunners and harquebusiers. Now I will explain how.»

The navigation continued quietly until late afternoon. Captain Foscari was about to prepare the galleon to dock at the port of Rimini to spend the night, when a lookout, from his position at the top of the highest mast, shouted: «Pirate ship to starboard! Galleon flying the Turkish flag, in battle trim.»

«It’s Selim!», Andrea whispered to Captain Foscari, already beginning to feel a certain excitement at the idea of the fight.

The Sea Captain shouted some orders in seafaring jargon. Andrea didn’t understand anything, but he could admire again how, at each command, the crew of the ship was moving in perfect synchrony to comply with the will of the captain. In a few moments, the protective metal panels of the right side of the ship were lifted, the fire mouths were loaded and the bomb squad set themselves in combat position. The harquebusiers, instead, loaded their weapons, moved to the left side of the galleon, near the port wall.