Yesterday we asked, what does “rutter” mean and where did the term originate?

Nice job by Wayne Green on providing the correct answer! He wrote: “A rutter is a book of rhumb charts, or charts showing the way between ports. I can see some of these questions being used at cocktail hour quiz time in a few weeks time!!!! Can’t wait…study up!”

I’ll elaborate a bit more. A rutter is an early name for a book of sailing directions. It was usually illustrated with views of ports and coastlines seen from seaward. In 1483 a French sailor named Pierre Garcie wrote ”Grand Routier et Pilotage” for the west coast of France, and a translation appeared in English, possibly the first of a long series of rutters that appeared over the next two centuries. A printed version appeared in 1521 with woodcut views to facilitate identification of the coast from seaward. There was also information on tides and general advice on navigating.

Rutter also referred to the English seaman’s personal notebook in which he kept a record of  anchorages, etc. Such notebooks were usually handed down from father to son, being valued for the local information they held.