[Sidenote: II 239]
The “Galeas” like the “galliot”, belonged to the largest types of
vessels used for navigation near shore. The name alone indicates a
foreign origin for this kind of vessel, although they were frequently
found in Holland. Their mode of construction also shows the same
origin. Most of them were built at Königsberg, Stettin, Stralsund, etc.
They gauged up to 100 and even 260 tons. (~Le Comte~, p. 35.)
The galeas traded especially between Holland, England and France. They
drew from 8 to 14 feet (2.26 to 3.96 m.) Like the “galliots”, they
had two masts, as a rule. Their build was very much like that of the
“Kotter” (cutter) and the “Sloep” (sloop).
Hence it was an exotic type of which, a few specimens are still met
with on the Baltic Sea, and which made its appearance later, probably
under the influence of the naval construction of the peoples of the
South. (In the Mediterranean: the names of Galeazza, Galeona, Galeota,
are still found).