Top: Keel, 18th century

Middle: Keel, 19th century

Bottom: Wherry early 19th
.............century

The silhouettes show how wherries evolved from the ancient keels; the sail patterns changed, and the more efficient forward mast took over. There were some 300 trading wherries on the Broads in the 19th century; fortunately one of them, the Albion, is still sailing, well preserved by the Wherry Trust, and well documented.