Symmetry and asymmetry (Positions of gun ports, ash shoots, entrances on upper deck, midship).

[Midship, port side of the Memorial ship Mikasa]

This image shows port side, upper deck, midship of the Mikasa.  

You can see one small anchor, four gun ports for 12 pounder gun, one ash shoot, and one entrance.

There are same things on her starboard side, but positions of the gun ports are different.

[Comparison between port side and starboard side*,

 the image of port side is rotated 180 degrees for comparison. ]

The ash shoots and the entrances are respectively on symmetrical positions about the center line of the ship.

However, outlines of gun ports #7, #9, #11, #13 (starboard side) are shifted ahead of outlines of gun port #8, #10, #12, #14 (port side), respectively, although these guns seem to be on symmetrical positions about the center line. 

[Midship of the Mikasa]

Positions of gun ports, ash shoots, and entrances in the drawing are based on measured values by me onboard the Mikasa.

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* You may notice that positions of the davits astern are not on on symmetrical positions. That's right, but the difference may be seen too much due to difference between shooting angles of the photographs.

Pictures of the Memorial ship Mikasa.

For your information. Recent pictures.

Yuzuru Hiraga Digital Archive reopened.

This Archive had closed due to security problem in May, 2014.
But, on 10th Oct., 2014, it reopened.

New URL is below.

 http://gazo.dl.itc.u-tokyo.ac.jp/hiraga2/

That's good news.

Several pictures (For Your Information)

For Your Information.

This picture was taken on 17th July, 1904. About 50 men of members of the Diet and correspondents visited the Mikasa and the Asahi.

Aft 12-inch guns of the Mikasa, at Portsmouth. (Postcard)

12-inch guns of the Asahi.  (Shashin-Gahou)

12-inch guns of the Shikishima. ("ARTILLERY AND EXPLOSIVES" Plate XXXI.)

A Happy New Year! (Akemashite Omedetou Gozaimasu)

Mikasa , 1st, Jan., 2014

A happy new year! 

The memorial ship Mikasa is open.

Positions of 47mm 2.5pdr quick firing guns on aft bridge deck at Battle of Tsushima.

According to one photograph of the Mikasa*1, it is probable that positions of 47mm 2.5pdr quick firing guns on aft bridge deck were ;

[Plan of aft bridge. showing positions of 47mm 2.5pdr QF guns on Feb., 2nd, 1905. ]

I can not reprint the photo, so I will show them with a sketch.

[Part of the photo. looking forward ]

*1 : Library of Yamato museum material# PG049770 (taken on Feb., 2nd, 1905).
      or
      The magazine "世界の艦船 ( SHIPS OF THE WORLD) , April, 1969, No.140"

COALING HATCH on boat deck

[Upper deck, midship , port, under boat deck. ]

(1) Coaling hatch on boat deck

(2) Upper deck , midship. The plate on the deck seems to be a protection from bags of coal falling through the coaling hatch(1) .

Drawing (1) and (2) are from "PLANS OF SHIPS OF THE IMPERIAL JAPANESE NAVY - HISTORY OF SHIPBUILDING IN SHOWA ERA"(published in 1975) . It was only one of commerce in fine size in Japan. Unfortunately, the drawing is not clear. But recently EAGLEMOSS distributed clear drawings.

So I can see almost characters on the drawings now.