Text by Vid Slapnicar
It's a cold late winter morning on the Adriatic. In a coastal town on the island of Losinj, the calloused hands of a boat builder run along a wooden ship's hull. His fingertips feel the sealant between the joints of the mighty planks. Has the work been carried out carefully? Is the ship ready to be launched? It had been ashore for several months for overhaul. Now the "Nerezinac" is ready to set sail again.
It is assumed that her keel was laid between 1850 and 1880 in one of the Losinj shipyards. At that time she was still called "Drazica". The exact year of her construction cannot be determined without carbon dating or other scientific methods. She was clearly inspired by the workboats fitted with square sails that were common off the coasts of France, England, Ireland and Scotland at the time - the luggers.
Their hulls were mostly shallow and their draught was low. This meant that they could be used for coastal fishing and also for cargo shipping in shallow waters and especially in tidal areas. The boat builders on the Adriatic, on the other hand, adapted them to their area: Here, the ships had to deal with strong bora and jugo winds as well as a short and steep wave. The hulls were therefore given a deeper and much more pronounced keel. With a displacement of 50 tonnes, the "Drazica" was one of the larger ships sailing the Adriatic at the time. Only a few other boats weighed more than 80 tonnes. Year after year, it transported wood from the islands and the mainland to the glassblowers' furnaces in the northern lagoon of Venice.
"Nerezinac" goes from lugger to minesweeper to motorised cargo ship
During the Second World War, she escaped confiscation by being flagged out to Malta. Due to her wooden construction, she was used as a minesweeper. She only returned to the North Adriatic after the war. Her rigging was cut and she was converted into a motorised cargo ship in Kraljevica. From then on, her holds held salt, coal, sand and granite. At some point, however, she became obsolete as a workhorse. More modern ships could carry significantly more cargo, were faster and consumed less fuel.
However, the Turina family from Smrika, who owned the ship, had neither the financial means nor the technical capabilities to restore it. There was probably also little interest in preserving the "Drazica". So she was left to decay. She rotted away in a dry dock.
Eventually, however, the tide turned. Three men discovered the lugger and took care of it. The first of them was Ferdinando Zorovic from Nerezine, a harbour town in the north-east of Losinj. He persuaded the local shipyard manager Kreso Lekovic to accommodate the "Drazica" in his company. He brought his friend Karl-Heinz Pütz on board as a third party. The man from Cologne had settled on the Adriatic and owned a hotel and restaurant in Nerezine together with Zorovic.
The trio decided to preserve the ship and with it a piece of the region's boatbuilding tradition. But this was anything but easy. The three of them failed in their attempt to find private sponsors for the restoration of the ship. Then Karl-Heinz Pütz died unexpectedly, leaving the two remaining men to drive the project forward alone. Several years passed before a solution was found: the "Mala Barka 2" initiative. This was a cross-border Croatian-Slovenian project to preserve and revitalise the maritime heritage of the northern Adriatic.
Most important maritime cultural treasure of the fleet of preserved luggers
In collaboration with Professor Robert Mohovic's team from the Faculty of Navigation at the University of Rijeka and in cooperation with the town of Losinj, the lugger was finally refloated in spring 2019. On this occasion, it was given its new name: "Nerezinac". It now has its permanent berth in front of the Apoxyomenos Museum in Mali Losinj. An interactive exhibition has been integrated below deck. The municipality of Losinj is supporting the project financially, not least because it wants to use it as a tourist flagship. The operation of the ship, however, remains in the hands of the University of Rijeka.
Today, the "Nerezinac" is only one of several luggers still in existence on the Adriatic. But thanks to her size and professional restoration, she is undoubtedly the most important maritime cultural treasure in the fleet. She has long been a welcome guest in all parts of the Adriatic and also in neighbouring Mediterranean areas. She is regularly invited to classical music festivals in particular.
The ship is led by its charismatic captain, Gilberto Fazlic. As the winter draws to a close, it is he who, with a knowing look and scrutinising hand, strokes the planks, inspects the hull and rigging and finally gives the command to let the "Nerezinac" glide back into the water. A cold wind blows across the sea, but the sky, previously covered in grey clouds, breaks open at this very moment. The soft light of the low sun suddenly bathes the ship in golden hues.
Manoeuvring the colossus out of the harbour without machine support would be a daring undertaking
How I would have loved to go on board immediately, untie the lines, hoist the sails and set course for the Adriatic. But it's not that far yet. It will be another few weeks before the ship is ready to set sail. Above all, the rigging, which was largely removed before winterisation, must first be rigged again. For now, all that remains are long conversations with the captain down in the belly of the ship about the boat, its history and the tradition of fishing and cargo shipping in the Adriatic.
Some time later, however, the time has come. Gilberto Fazlic has called in reinforcements to handle the four jibs, two mainsails and two topsails: five men from the island, all seasoned sailors, uniformly dressed in navy blue and white striped shirts. They clearly enjoy taking the old lady out. With vigour and enthusiasm, they hang onto the lines to pull the heavy yards upwards and later to hoist and tighten the sails. Jokes fly across the deck, shouts of encouragement. One of them, Vedran, has also dedicated his career to the maritime world: He is a sailmaker and has even taken part in a mini-transat campaign.
The sky is clear on this warm early summer's day. A gentle breeze sweeps across the water. As we cast off, the ship's diesel engine has to get going. It starts up without grumbling, much to the delight and probably also relief of the captain. Manoeuvring the colossus out of the harbour without engine assistance would be a daring undertaking. Especially as the rudder blade had not been restored to its original state as part of the restoration work. It is no longer as small as it was when the lugger was still sailing as a freighter. But it is also not as big as it was when the ship was launched.
And: "The 5.5 metre long bowsprit isn't exactly helpful when it sweeps over the pedestrianised harbour pier when casting off in reverse," explains Fazlic with a grin. The roles are well distributed and practised among the crew, so the captain rarely has to give commands.
"Nerezinac" has more than passable crossing properties
It takes some time before all the sails are set. Gilberto Fazlic switches off the engine, drops off slightly and the "Nerezinac" immediately lies gently on its side. She glides calmly across the Adriatic. It is by no means a matter of course that she stays on course. "The rudder alone wouldn't do it," explains the captain. "It's also important to trim the aft sail correctly. If that's not the case, the rudder pressure quickly becomes far too great."
Next, Fazlic demonstrates the ship's more than passable turning characteristics. A tacking angle of only around 45 degrees to the wind is not something you would expect from such an old boat. As expected, however, the boat's speed is manageable: on an upwind course, the maximum speed through the water is no more than three knots - no doubt also due to the weak breeze. Most of the time it is even one knot less. On courses before the wind, the speed indicator sometimes climbs to over three knots. "The ship just needs a lot more wind to really get going," says the captain, shrugging his shoulders. So you can only guess how well the old lady will perform in spring and autumn, when there are often storms on the Adriatic.
Even now, in extremely moderate conditions, every move in the sailing manoeuvre has to be right. Because one thing the "Nerezinac" is not is manoeuvrable. Coordination is important. Sometimes even that doesn't help, and the engine has to be kept running so that the bow goes through the wind when tacking. The men joke that on land, mothers now teach their children to brush their teeth before going to bed for as long as it takes the "Nerezinac" to turn.
"Nerezinac" makes it clear how much effort sailing meant in those days
It's hard to imagine how the sailors of old could have steered such a ship through the many narrow passages between the local islands without the help of an engine. It was certainly not for the faint-hearted. But they had little choice. At home, wives and children were waiting to be looked after.
The day at sea is over far too quickly. The captain steers the ship back to the harbour. Anyone who thinks that hoisting the sails is much easier than setting them is mistaken. The cloths and yards slide quickly down the mast under their own weight. The subsequent hoisting, however, is a more than sweaty affair. Everyone has to lend a hand, even the captain switches on the autopilot and lends a hand.
For the last time, you get an idea of how much effort seafaring used to involve. Unlike today, it was a necessity and not a pleasure. Ships like the "Nerezinac" bear witness to this. It's a good thing they still exist.
Technical data of the "Nerezinac"
- Torso length: 18,90 m
- Width: 4,63 m
- Depth: 2,0 m
- Weight: 50 t
- Mast height: 18 m
- sail area: 170 m2
- Motor: Iveco Aifo 199 kW
