Not long ago the legendary yacht underwent extensive rebuild at Royal Huisman. She has had quite a few refits before, but this one turned out to be the longest and took almost three years
To get a better idea of what the Dutch shipbuilders at Huisfit actually had to deal with, we should look into the yacht’s past. Initially christened Caleta, Atlantide had seven owners, and each of them treated her with even more reverence than the previous owner.
Beginning
Atlantide is not just a sailing motor boat, but one of the first tender boats in history. Who came up with the idea of a tender and when? It was in the 1930s, and the author of the idea was a famous yachtsman and an avid racer.
The 37-metre motor-powered sailing yacht, or a motorsailer, was launched at Philip & Sons shipyard in Devonshire and christened Caleta. Her elegant exterior was owed to the main yacht designer of Scotland, Alfred Mylne. An expert in sailboats, who later designed the 126-metre three-masted Britannia for the British royal family, and no less than 600 yachts during his life in total. He designed Caleta for a person, whose good intentions he had never doubted: an entrepreneur and a daring yachtsman, Sir William Burton. Over a period of 25 years he took part in more than 1000 regattas, and won at least 300 of them.
He mainly navigated his own sailing boats. But sometimes piloted some other famous boats, too. And this was the case in 1930, the year when Caleta hit the water. At the helm of Shamrock V that belonged to his friend, Sir Thomas Lipton, he entered the race for the America's Cup. And he almost won! Although he came back without a trophy, still he managed to take his life on the waterto a new level, because a tender was waiting for him back in Devonshire, the 37-meter Caleta. She followed Burton in all his races and became more than a tender – a villa on the water off the coast of Britain, a perfect place for rest after regattas. She had a master and VIP cabins and one double cabin. There was a crew of six there. As opposed to the sailboats that could not rely on engines much, Caleta was equipped with two 8-cylinder Gardner diesel engines of 231 hp each. She can still reach 10-12 knots under them.
War and post-war years
The calm years of racing with Burton were soon over. In 1939 the yacht was requisitioned by the Royal Navy as a coast guard vessel. In 1940 the well-armed yacht became one of the famous Little Ships of Dunkirk that evacuated the British and French soldiers from Dunkirk harbour.
She behaved so well in battle that was among the few vessels entitled to fly the distinguished St. George’s Cross, of which there is still a commemorative plaque on one of her sides.
After the war, Caleta came back to normal lie. Now she belonged to the a Greek shipping magnate, who renamed her Ariane in 1950. After that she was purchased by the British yachtsman and historian, Maldwin Drummond, who renamed her Corisande and moved her to Antibes.
In the 80s she was sold to Italian Count Nicolo delle Rose, who moved her homeport to Monaco and gave her the name of Atlantide.
Back to basics
What’s really interesting is not so much the fact that “Tender is the Night” with Ingrid Bergman was filmed on board Atlantide, but what happened to the yacht in 1998. In 1998, Atlantide was purchased by an American venture capitalist named Thomas Perkins, who brought her back to her initial specialty of a regatta tender.
This was before the 88-meter Maltese Falcon, for which Perkins is mainly known in the yacht industry. A native of New York, Perkins took an active part in racing with the sailing yacht named Mariette of 1915, which he restored based on the original sketches found in the archives of his alma mater, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
Judging by the news of those years, Atlantide was listed for sale for $5 million. But Perkins spent three times that amount on her refit. The project involved Camper & Nicholsons shipbuilders, BMT Nigel Gee Yachts engineering bureau, and designer Ken Freivokh.
The hull was reconstructed on Malta, while the new superstructure and interior were rethought by British Camper and Nicholson. The Art Deco interior now featured an almost musem collection of glasswork by Rene Lalique. For the next six years Atlantide accompanies Mariette of 1915, and after the launch of Maltese Falcon in 2005, she appeared with her, too. Nevertheless, in 2012 Perkins sold Atlantide.
Contemporary history
Although this fact is not mentioned often, the current owner, Jim Clark, who started her refit Huisfit, did not appear right after Perkins. Prior to him, there was also a couple from Canada. Richard and Leslie Fairbanks, Feadship’s repeat clients, were not thinking of buying a second yacht, but after they saw Atlantide, they just could not calm down until they left the Mallorcan port on it.
The couple used Atlantide as a tender, while racing in New England, where they sailed a classic 1903 sailboat designed by Nathanael Herreshoff. Atlantide also travelled a lot, visited British Columbia and approached Greenland, always fearless and self-sufficient, with an impressive range of over 3000 nautical miles and reliable Vosper stabilizers.
In 2020 Atlantide was purchased by Jim Clark, one of Silicon Valley pioneers, cofounder of Netscape company, thanks to which web developers have JavaScript programming language, and website users have cookies. He believed Atlantide was a perfect tender to his J Class sailboat.
They already knew Clark well at the Dutch Royal Huisman shipyard. Before they had time to build his 47-meter racing Hyperion sailboat, he started talking about a 90-meter snow-white three-masted Athena. And he didn’t stop at Athena, either: there was his J Class Hanuman. 11 years later before they had time to finish Hanuman’s planned refit, he bought Atlantide and sent her to the Netherlands across the ocean.
Atlantide’s refit
At Royal Huisman they treated her with so much trepidation, as if they were building her from scratch. “If a discerning client commissions a fourth very substantial project to the same shipyard, you just know that the work you perform is truly appreciated”, the shipyard commented.
As it is often the case with ancient vessels, a refit turned into a full-blown rebuild. Inches-thick filler was crumbling off her hull, stripping some dented and deformed steel, with some plates sagging against frames. Corrosion impacted the aluminum extension to the teak deckhouse, while only glue and filler held the main deck windows in place, which caused leaks that damaged interior bulkheads and built-ins.
Huisfit experts spent six months on scanning and 3D design, replaces all the piping system, added insulation and restored the teak superstructure, preserving 95% of the original bronze fitting.
The wood on the deck that the owner is so fond of had to be treated in a ancient way, with 14 steps of hand bleaching, coloring, French polishing, and distressing. Moreover, the yacht got completely new rigging and sails that are compliant with the original project.
The interior style has changed. Huisfit and deVosdeVries Design replaced some of the most complicated Art Deco elements added by Perkins with something calmer, more neutral.
It is obvious, for instance, in the main saloon, and in the lounge, which used to be a dining area. Now there is a media room with a large sofa and comfy arm chairs, while dinners take place at a huge table aft.
As Clark feels it, there were some elements that didn’t seem fully thought out, and now everything is in its place. He is happy and considers Atlantide a true piece of art.
Sometimes you can still come across an ad on the Internet offering the yacht for sale, but it is outdated. Atlantide is with the Clarks. At regattas together with their beloved J Hanuman, or on the island of Martha's Vineyard, where they love to visit. And let this relationship last for years. Or better yet, for decades.
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