America 1:75

Product detailed description

Description: In 1850, at the request of the New York Sailing Club, the famous shipbuilder George Steers drew up plans for a new very fast ship.

On August 22, 1851, at the invitation of the British Royal Squadron of Yachts, the two-masted schooner America took part in the Hundred Guinea Cup around the Isle of Wight off the south coast of England. In the competition of 14 British vessels easily won; three days later, Queen Victoria herself paid a visit to the ship's deck. America returned home with great glory and donated the trophy (affectionately nicknamed "Auld Mug" by the Sea Wolves) to the New York Sailing Club. The cup has since been called the America’s Cup and is still being competed for, making it the world's oldest sports trophy. America then participated in another 50 races, served as a training ship for the Naval Academy in Newport, and in the 20th century then fell into disrepair in various ports. Although President Roosevelt tried in 1940 to persuade Congress to approve funds to save the ship and place it in the National Maritime Museum, time had different priorities. During the snowstorm in 1942, America took over - a model of the ship was built from the salvaged pieces of wood, which can be found in the museum of the Naval Academy in Annapolis. Three replicas of the schooner have been built in the last 50 years - two in the US - but a third (christened Skythia) has its home port in Rostock, Germany and serves as a commercial cruise ship. America is designed for intermediate shipbuilders; is designed as a non-floating desktop model.

America has a hull of classic wooden construction from laser-cut parts with a plank plating and a wooden deck. The kit contains all the wooden and plastic parts needed to complete the model, mock-up accessories, tarpaulins, etc.