- published: 25 Apr 2016
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The ceremonies involved in naming and launching naval ships are based in traditions thousands of years old.
There are three principal methods of conveying a new ship from building site to water, only two of which are called "launching." The oldest, most familiar, and most widely used is the end-on launch, in which the vessel slides, usually stern first, down an inclined slipway. The side launch, whereby the ship enters the water broadside, came into 19th-century use on inland waters, rivers, and lakes, and was more widely adopted during World War II. The third method is float-out, used for ships that are built in basins or dry docks and then floated by admitting water into the dock.
Launch of the Friedland on 4 March 1840, sliding stern first
The side-launch of the USCGC Mackinaw (WLBB-30)
A Babylonian narrative dating from the 3rd millennium BC describes the completion of a ship:
Openings to the water I stopped;
I searched for cracks and the wanting parts I fixed:
Three sari of bitumen I poured over the outside;
To the gods I caused oxen to be sacrificed.