There was a time when those who went to sea were said to be made of steel.
In those times, the ships they sailed in were made of wood. Now it’s the ships which are made of steel with very few built in wood. The 47 metre Aquarius might, however, change the way future owners think of steel because this Turkish built superyacht is built of wood
The yacht’s hull and superstructure is built using a cold moulding technique where the interior frames and beams use sapelli and mahogany and the hull is cold moulded epoxy resin infused plywood.
Commissioned by a British businessman, the yacht was built by the Mengi Yay shipyard, a company that has 50 years of experience churning out Gulets which, are traditionally built using the same methods.
Bahadir Sen of Mengi Yay believes, “Wood is more flexible than steel. Also laminated wood is more durable than either fibre reinforced plastic or glass reinforced plastic and is close to that offered by steel.” He says, “Wood is the natural choice when it comes isolation and insulation.” He adds “The first boats/vessels to sail around the world were made of wood making wooden boat building as old as human history. Wood as a material has proven itself for both durability and reliability; what is more, it is hugely economic, fast and it produces a lighter yacht than those built out of steel to the same size and fitted out with the same machinery.