A Carrack was a type of large round sailing ship built from the 15th-17th centuries and was characterised by a high forecastle and a deep hull with multiple decks. Carracks were either three or four masted with the fore and main mast being square rigged and the mizzen and bonaventure-mizzen (if present) being lateen rigged (ie with a single triangular sail). Carracks were used for trade, exploration, and in the case of larger carracks, warfare. The galleon was a development of the carrack with a lowered superstructure and longer hull, though generally still with a similar sail plan. The sleeker profile allowed for improved sailing qualities such as a faster speed; however, it decreased the amount of cargo the ship could carry due to the narrower hull for the ship's tonnage. Due to their superior sailing qualities, they often made for effective warships and oceanic trade vessels. Galleons were built from the 16th-18th century and would evolve into the full-rigged ships of the classic age of sail. Caravels were small 2 or 3 masted lateen-rigged round ships used in the Mediterranean in the 15th-16th centuries. they were a predecessor to the carrack along with the square-rigged cog, and generally lacked the high superstructures seen on later sailing ships. Caravels were originally mostly used for coastal or Mediterranean Sea trade; however, they would also be used for much of the early oceanic exploration by the Spanish and Portuguese in the late 15th-16th century.
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