Artifact: Rope and other hemp products
Materials: Hemp
Dimensions:
Date: Colonial
Origin: Williamsburg, VA
Collection: Image Courtesy of The Colonial Williamsburg Foundation
License: All rights reserved
Ledger Entry: Rope
Department: Building
Customer: Brigantine Alexandria
Ledger Page: 351
Imported From: Hemp was widely grown throughout the American colonies and would have been processed and spun into rope locally.
Product Description
Rope could be made of either hemp or flax because of their strength and durability. Hemp was the more common material for rope because of the shorter fibers of the flax plant and because flax plants yield lower amounts of fiber than hemp. Although rope had a variety of uses on land, it was used in the highest volume at sea where it was used in the rigging of sails.
Citation: Ben Swenson. “Hemp & Flax in Colonial America,” CW Journal Winter 2015.;
Historical Price: 3 pounds, 10 pence; Modern USD: $682
Product Variations
The databases record five purchases of rope, three of which are to the account of the Brigantine Alexandria. Two of these are identified as twice laid rope, and they are identified by numbers. Rope was sold by the coil, bolt, or by weight. The prices range drastically from six pence for two bolts of unspecified rope to three pounds and ten pence for two coils of twice laid rope.
