A lovely image of the “Alster” from the Newcastle Archives, a steel-hulled, four masted, fully rigged sailing ship built at the Harland and Wolff yard in Belfast for the White Star Line during 1890 under name "California." She had a length of 392.3 feet (119m) and weighed in at 3,099 tons so she only just fitted onto the pontoon.

She is recorded to have loaded coals at Penarth in 1911 bound for South America so was probably undergoing inspection and repair prior to the Atlantic crossing. At this time she was German owned and on the return voyages from South America she brought back nitrates. The lower image has been colourised.

There used to be a model of the vessel at the Sailor's Home in Liverpool - I need to find out if it is still there. She was wrecked on Old Providence Island some time after 1926.

Note the ship yard employees on deck who are dwarfed by the scale of the ship, its anchor and the pontoon. The image indicates how the ship is balanced with the use of the side shores and the keel shores whilst the keel is supported throughout her length upon the keel blocks. Quite a balancing act! [062] [074]