Name Diana Class and type Frigate Launched 1853 | Fate Sank in December 1854 Propulsion sail | |
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Diana was a frigate of the Imperial Russian Navy. She was built in 1853, and was the flagship of the Russian explorer Yevfimy Putyatin when he visited Japan in 1854.
Putyatin's fleet was damaged in a tsunami, following the powerful Ansei-Tōkai earthquake of 23 December 1854. Diana sank in the bay of Miyajima-mura (宮島村) (modern Fuji-shi, 富士市) while sailing from Shimoda to Heda for repairs.
Three hundred Japanese carpenters worked with the Russian sailors to build a Western-style ship in two months, with the help of plans salvaged from Diana. They eventually built a two-masted schooner, named Heda, displacing 100 tons, with a length of 24 metres (79 ft). The ship was named in honour of the Japanese city that helped with its construction.
References
Russian frigate Diana Wikipedia(Text) CC BY-SA