Bilander

An illustration of a bilander

A bilander, also spelled billander or bélandre, was a small European merchant ship with two masts - used in the Netherlands for coast and canal traffic and occasionally seen in the North Sea but more frequently to be seen in the Mediterranean Sea. The mainmast was lateen-rigged with a trapezoidal mainsail, but the foremast carried the conventional square course and square topsail. Displacement was typically under 100 tons. The bilander was short-lived, being replaced by more efficient designs, and few examples exist today.