A Slice of History : Joining the Sticks of Joseph and Judah

We offer 100 collections for $1,000 sponsorships including a 0.5″ sliced section of a twisted keel, olive wool pegs, and European black walnut tenons. These pieces sailed 3,000 nautical miles on two oceans and over three seas. The pieces represent the clearest link between the histories of the New and Old Worlds that were separated by 2,600 years, 6,500 miles and the Atlantic Ocean.

The Hebrew Bible tells us so much about the Babylonians’ destruction of Jerusalem and burning of the Temple of Solomon. In the Old Testament, about a fifth of the verses describe the captivity of two generations of Jews. Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Lehi all prophesied these events. In reading the Word of God as given to us by the Jews, we should pay close attention to Jerusalem’s history in the sixth and fifth centuries before Christ.

Could there be a connection between the Bible and ancient America from that time of trouble in 600 BC? We believe there is. Come to Montrose, Iowa, and see how the PHOENICIA is the connecting point for the Sticks of Joseph and Judah.

Each of the offered item is uniquely numbered giving you the chance to be part of the ongoing legacy once the ship has been restored. Many people will be able to sponsor collections as unusual gifts or dedicated them in memory of loved ones. All sponsors will be added to our website and will receive certificates of ownership and unique pin badges to recognize them as honored sponsors of PHOENICIA in America.

During the summer months we will prepare special collections that will stand as family legacies and witnesses of how the Sticks of Joseph and Judah came together in America.

What is wonderful about working on the restoration of the world’s oldest ship replica is that we become more aware of the many details that shipwrights controlled when they constructed the ancient world’s most seaworthy vessels 2,600 years ago.

The keel is a structural beam that runs in the middle of the ship from bow to stern. The purpose of the keel is to give the ship greater stability and control while moving across the ocean. Without the keel, the ship would slip or skim on the surface of the water. All parts of the ship are connected to the keel.

Last week Blaise Colasante and David Snyder made a new keel section to replace a timber that was soaked in sea water for more than a decade and that had twisted while drying over the last two years. These two workers made the replacement section of the keel to fit perfectly between the two splice plates on the ship.

Four holes were drilled using bolt holes in the splice plate as a guide. While the new keel section was test fitted, the workers checked the alignment using a chalk line along the entire keel. They then placed the next port-side lower hull section on the cribbage and aligned it with the hull panel on the ship to determine layout for the port-side hull to keel mortise cuts. The port side mortise cuts were all laid out and marked. A router guide was clamped in place on the new keel for routing with a 3/8″ bit in the Bosch router. At that point they were done for the day.

We remind our supporters that we are putting together a ship replica that faithfully follows the pattern of the 600 BC Jules Verne 7 Shipwreck that came out of the mud of the old port of Marseilles, France.

There are more than 10,000 joints in the ship’s construction. These joints give the ship her strength and flexibility. We are sure that many future generations will come to the Phoenicia Ship Museum to see for themselves how the Old and New Worlds connected 2,000 years before Columbus.

We are fortunate to have volunteers who have the necessary skills to put the pieces back together again.

Come and see what we are doing this summer in Montrose, Iowa, directly across the Mississippi River from the Nauvoo Temple. We welcome all people of goodwill and faith.

Volunteers have already given more than 6,000 hours of time and attention. We move forward as God gives us the strength to go forward. We know that only with God’s help will this project succeed. We need the support of thousands of people as we bring the pieces together. Go to https://www.phoenicia.rocks/ to make a donation.

Here are some pictures from last week and today.