Dutch Tallship Thalassa Barquentine sails the Irish coast and the Hebrides

Clare Island, Ireland, July 2013. Crewmember Alex ties up the sails. Thalassa arrives at Clare Island (Oileán Chliara in Irish) is a mountainous island guarding the entrance to Clew Bay in County Mayo, Ireland. It is famous as the home of the pirate queen, Gráinne O'Malley. Approximately 145 people live there today. It is the first time that Tallship Thalassa, a barquentine sailing vessel with 3 masts, sails from Belfast to Galway along the Irish coastline. While a full-rigged ship is square-rigged on all three masts, and the barque is square-rigged on the foremast and main, the barquentine extends the principle by making only the foremast square-rigged. The advantages of a smaller crew, good performance before the wind and the ability to sail relatively close to the wind while carrying plenty of cargo made it a popular rig at the end of the 19th century. Photo by Frits Meyst/Adventure4ver.com