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On Mon, May 25, 2015 at 11:11 AM, David Pike  wrote:
> Would you call that a "crow's nest" or a "top", and would it be the best
> place to take a sight?  You'd get a better view of the horizon, but the
> "dip" correction would be greater.  Also, you'd be moving around more than
> on the quarter deck.

Today's Disney Pop culture might call it a crow's nest, but
historically it was a top, probably of the 16th or 17th century.  The
clothing, on the other hand, seems more 18th century.

A real crow's nest was an invention of the whaling fleet, and was more
of a hoop structure and a foot rest to secure a lookout spending many
hours aloft.

One reason for using a sextant aloft rather than from a more stable
deck might be as a distance measuring tool, such as viewing the angle
subtended by a the height of a distant mast from the waterline.

Don Seltzer

   

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