Caldercraft 1/64 Scale HM Bark Endeavour 1768 Model Kit

The Caldercraft Kit of the Endeavour Bark includes: CNC cut ply and walnut components throughout; Double planking in lime and walnut; Etched brass and turned brass fittings; Cast decoration and figurehead; Rigging in black and natural; A set of four plank on frame ships boats; Full set of detailed construction plans and a comprehensive instruction manual. Specifications: Scale: 1:64  Length: 725mm  Beam 275mm  Height 590mm  Planking: Double Part No: C9006 In the 1760’s, the Royal Society had designs to send a group of astronomers to the south pacific to observe the transition of the planet Venus between the Earth and the Sun on June 3rd 1769. This was a rare astronomical event not to be repeated for more than a century. The expedition was supported both by George 3rd who granted the sum £4000 to defray expenses, and the Royal Navy, who were to provide a ship. This ship was the Whitby Collier Earl of Pembroke, which was purchased on 29 March 1768 and renamed His Majesty’s Bark Endeavour. The Royal Society proposed that the noted hydrographer and cartographer Alexander Dalrymple was to command the ship, but this was rejected by the Lords of the Admiralty, stating that a ‘proper person’ should command the ship. This ‘proper person’ was James Cook, highly approved of by the Admiralty as a navigator, surveyor and cartographer. Giving command of the expedition to the 39 year old Cook, proved to be the best choice the Admiralty could have made. Endeavours voyages of discovery from 1768-1771 put the Pacific well and truly on the map. When purchased by the Navy, the Earl of Pembroke was described as a cat-built bark in burthen 368 tons, 3 years 9 months old. The price was £2,212 15s 6d for the hull and £94 lOs for masts and spars, which was later reduced to £56 17s 10d! On April 5 1768, she was registered on the Navy List as a bark by the name Endeavour. In 1790, Endeavour was sold at Dunkirk and joined the whaling trade and renamed La Liberte. She was