Figurehead

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For the metaphorical use, see Figurehead (metaphor)

Forecastle with figurehead
Grand Turk

Figurehead is a carved wooden decoration, often female or bestiary, found at the prow of ships of the 16th to the 19th century. The practice was introduced with the galleons of the 16th century, as although earlier ships had often had some form of bow ornamentation, the figurehead as such could not come to be until ships had an actual head structure upon which to place it.

As with the stern ornamentation, the purpose of the figurehead was often to indicate the name of the ship in a non-literate society (albeit in a sometimes very convoluted manner); and always, in the case of naval ships, to demonstrate the wealth and might of the owner. At the height of the Baroque period, some ships of the line boasted gigantic figureheads, weighing several tons and sometimes twinned on both sides of the bowsprit.

A large figurehead, being carved from massive wood and perched on the very foremost tip of the hull, adversely affected the sailing qualities of the ship. This, and cost considerations, led to figureheads' being made dramatically smaller during the 1700s, and in some cases they were abolished altogether around 1800. After the Napoleonic wars they made something of a comeback, but were then often in the form of a small waist-up bust rather than the oversized full figures previously used. The clipper ships of the 1850s and '60s customarily had full figureheads, but these were relatively small and light.

Figureheads as such died out with the sailing ship. Early steamships, however, did sometimes have gilt scroll-work and coats-of-arms at their bows. This practice lasted up until about World War I. The 1910 German liner SS Imperator originally sported a large bronze figurehead of an eagle (the Imperial German symbol) standing on a globe. The few extra feet of length added by the figurehead made the Imperator the longest ship in the world at the time of her launch.

It is still common practise for warships to carry metal badges somewhere on their superstructure which, like figureheads, relate to the ship's name- for example Type 42 Destroyers of the Royal Navy, which are named after British cities, carry badges depicting the coat of arms of their namesake.

In Germany, Belgium, and Holland, it was once believed that spirits/faeries called Klaboutermannikins (water mannikins) dwelt in the figureheads. The spirit guarded the ship from sickness, rocks, storms, and dangerous winds. If the ship sank, the Klaboutermannikin guided the sailors' souls to the Land of the Dead. To sink without a Klaboutermannikin condemned the sailor's soul to haunt the sea forever, so Dutch sailors believed.