Cargoes

The 1903 poem vividly contrasts three vessels from different eras: a quinquereme from Nineveh, a stately Spanish galleon, and a dirty British coaster. Each ship carries a vastly different type of cargo reflecting its specific time period.

The British coaster, named the "Cinnamon" in the text, carries mundane, dirty industrial materials. Its cargo consists of cheap coal, iron-ore, cotton goods, firewood, and rusty iron, contrasting heavily with the treasures of the ancient ships.

A quinquereme is a Roman or Greek warship, not a merchant vessel, and Nineveh was an inland city with no access to the sea. Masefield prioritized romantic, exotic sounds and vivid imagery over strict historical and geographical accuracy.

The poem implicitly critiques the industrial revolution by contrasting the beautiful, luxurious cargoes of the ancient and Renaissance world with the dirty realities of modern British commerce. It remains widely anthologized for this striking juxtaposition of imagery.