Sea Shanty Sing along with the Skallywaggs sea shanty! Each event card in the Skallywaggs game features a different verse of this original piratical tune. That's thirty verses in all! Preview a sample of the lyrics by clicking the sing along button or just listen to the tune by clicking play music. Great Books Want to know more about pirates or maritime life in general? Visit your local library and look for these excellent books. A General History of Pirates by Captain Charles Johnson Under the Black Flag by David Cordingly The History of Pirates by Angus Konstam Expedition Whydah by Barry Clifford & Paul Perry Two Years Before the Mast by Richard Henry Dana Jr Seafaring Lore and Legend: A Miscellany of Maritime Myth, Superstition, Fable, and Fact by Peter D Jeans Folklore and the Sea by Horace Beck

Yard Yarns Many strange beliefs and superstitions followed men out to sea. Some might be dismissed with a wink and a nod, but to ignore others was a dangerous temptation of fate... Whistling on board ship was considered unlucky as you might whistle up a storm. If a contrary wind blows stop your sewing to avoid putting a stitch in the wind that might prevent it turning favorable. Sailors pierced their ears to improve their eyesight. A gold earring was both a charm against drowning and the price paid to Davy Jones to enter the next world if a sailor died at sea. A silver coin is placed under the main mast as a ship is built to ensure successful voyages. A few strands of a loved ones hair knitted into a sailor's sock is a charm to bring him safely home. Cats carry lightning in their tails and can call the wind by sneezing. Anger the ship's cat and it may call a gale. A ring around the moon warns of a storm, the number of stars in the ring shows how soon it will hit. To dream of wild horses also means bad weather is on the way. Never use sea stones as ballast; the ocean may wreck your ship to take them back again. For the same reason it is unwise to wear clothes colored by dyes made from sea plants. Seamen should not eat garlic or onions lest their breath demagnetize the ship's compass, but if this happens a star carved on the bowsprit should guide your ship safely home. Back to Top