"Pilgrim William Bradford vividly described the atrocious weather conditions endured by the Mayflower.'After they had enjoyed fair winds and weather for a season, they were encountered many times with cross winds, and met with many fierce storms, with which the ship was shroudly shaken, and her upper works made very leaky; and one of the main beams in the mid ships was bowed and cracked, which put them in some fear that the ship could not be able to perform the voyage.'"
"the moment a massive wave slams into the tiny ship with sufficient force to bow and crack a main beam." According to Haywood, "I have shown the ship hulling with the lower yards resting on the rails."And for another painting, Mike states:
"This is my latest painting of the Mayflower at dawn on the 11th November 1620, as she is about to anchor for the first time after her arduous voyage in what is now called Provincetown harbor. All is peace and calm after the trials of the voyage. The symbolism of the new dawn, giving fresh hope to the exhausted passengers and crew is clear. The reflected path of the sunlight falls upon the longboat, which is just about to be launched for the first exploratory trip to the nearby land. the Mayflower at dawn on the 11th November 1620, as she is about to anchor for the first time after her arduous voyage in what is now called Provincetown harbor. All is peace and calm after the trials of the voyage. The symbolism of the new dawn, giving fresh hope to the exhausted passengers and crew is clear. The reflected path of the sunlight falls upon the longboat, which is just about to be launched for the first exploratory trip to the nearby land."
"On April 5, 1621, the Mayflower set sail, bound for England, arriving back on May 6, bringing news of the successful establishment of Plimoth: but with a devastating 50% loss of lives, and with no cargo of lumber, furs and fish for profit.
The Mayflower then sailed to France, bringing home to London a cargo of salt. Shortly after, her master and quarter-owner, Christopher Jones, fell sick. He died in March 1623.
"My painting shows the Mayflower in 1624, sitting in ruins in the river Thames. The sunset is symbolic of the end of the life of the vessel. The Port of London is in the background, soon to exploit the riches of the New World, unaware of the historic importance of the decaying hulk in its midst. The Mayflower was valued at £128, including 5 anchors, the suit of worn sails, an old pitch pot and kettle (a large cauldron). Undoubtedly the ship was sold off as scrap lumber.Mr. Haywood offers all 8 of his Mayflower paintings as limited edition Giclée prints on canvas. The edition size is 250 for each picture. As a special offer, he is making available the first 50 prints of each edition at the reduced price of US$240 each, over 50% off. For additional information or to obtain limited edition prints of Mike Haywood's brilliant work, please visit his web site listed below for further details.
In 1920, J. Rendal Harris claimed to have discovered the Mayflower as a barn in Jordans, England. Despite the total lack of evidence and no supporting documentation, this theory has been accepted by the mass media, and has found itself in "National Geographic," and as a question on Jeopardy. Nonetheless it is almost certainly not the Mayflower. I have painted some foxes on the side of the cart on which the timber is being loaded, alluding to this hoax!"
