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A figurehead is any carved figure on the bow of a ship -- they're not strictly limited to women. Figureheads through the ages have included snakes, horses, eagles, unicorns, elephants, bulls, lions, and prominent politicians. Why put a figurehead on your boat? For good luck, of course. Sailors are a superstitious breed. The ancient Chinese and Egyptian sailors anointed their ships with occuli (eyes), to help them find their way across rough seas. The Phoenicians later added wooden carvings of animist deities including serpents and birds. The figureheads protected the ship, and inspired fear in the hearts of enemies. It wasn't until the
late 1770s that human figures began appearing on the bow of ships. Exotic foreigners, fierce soldiers, and proud statesmen were quite popular, along with figures modeled after ship owners' wives. This probably tied into sailors' view of ships as female entities. Figurehead carving is artisan's work today -- commissioned and incredibly labor intensive. There are still active maritime woodcarvers out there, though not many have web sites.
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